Ivy
by DarqueDeath4444
Summary: Under orders, Uchiha Sasuke is sent to Orochimaru's side where he meets Sakura, an isolated girl willing to do anything for her father's recognition. Sasuke sees Orochimaru take advantage of his daughter's loyalty to make her do inhumane things and realizes that with her upbringing, she doesn't know any better. Deciding to dig deeper, he finds a lonely girl starved for affection.
1. Chapter 1

**WEARESOSORRYNEWSTORYMEHMEHMEH...**

 **Yeah...**

 _ **Chapter ONE**_

Trying to spend all his pent up anger in one go, Uchiha Sasuke smashes the butt of his sword into the temple of the Sound shinobi with more force than necessary. The man crumbles, out before he even hits the ground.

A round of applause echoes through the underground training field. The Uchiha looks up, onyx eyes narrowing dangerously.

Orochimaru had perched himself on the stairs by the entrance, gold eyes gleaming even in the dim light. "Too easy for you, Sasuke-kun?"

Sasuke ignores the question, instead shooting one of his own. "When are you going to send me out?"

Orochimaru simply chuckles, dismissing the threat. "Patience, Sasuke-kun, is a virtue."

Sasuke resists the urge to snort. He neatly flicks his sword, flinging the blood off the blade.

"If you're that bored, perhaps I can give you something to entertain yourself with?"

Sasuke lets out a soft growl, not liking the mocking tone.

As expected, Orochimaru ignores him and instead, he casually glances over his shoulder. "Kabuto."

The grey haired bespectacled man appears behind his master, as though he had always been there. "Orochimaru-sama?"

"Give Sasuke-kun directions to the fourth floor."

"Fourth floor, Orochimaru-sama?" Kabuto asks. He shoots Sasuke a skeptical look, something that makes Sasuke want to Chidori him. "Do you not need the Uchiha alive?"

Orochimaru places a finger on his chin. "If he cannot handle it, perhaps I'll need to look for another vessel."

Sasuke narrows his eyes again, teeth clenched. He hated it when people talked as if he weren't there.

"Very well." Kabuto made a gesture with his hand. "Come, Sasuke-kun."

Sasuke stays stubbornly rooted to his spot. "What are you talking about?"

Orochimaru shoots him a look of amusement and concealed mockery. "You'll see."

Sasuke decides he did not like the smirk on Orochimaru's face either.

"Who knows?" Orochimaru continues. "Maybe she'll come to like you."

"She?" Sasuke asks

"Just go, Sasuke-kun." Kabuto calls.

Sasuke sneered. "I may just end up killing this 'she'." With that, he sheaths his blade and turns dismissively towards the stairs.

"Oh, I'm sure you'll like her." Orochimaru says.

Sasuke decides that it was not worth picking a fight over something like this. Ignoring the man, he follows Kabuto out of the room.

* * *

The fourth floor was a restricted area reserved for Orochimaru's experiment purposes and while curious, Sasuke had never actually felt the need to explore it. On the third floor, Sasuke can already hear the screams of some of the experiments. Sasuke glances at Kabuto who simply shrugs, completely unaffected. The former Konoha Shinobi leads him towards the stairs without stopping.

The smell of blood reaches his nose before they had even reached midway of the stairs. Kabuto, however, doesn't seem at all fazed and Sasuke molds his face into a mask of indifference.

Kabuto says a few words to the guard stationed at the stairs then leads the way deeper down the corridor. Sasuke can't help but glance around at all the people chained down, some clutching at the bars of the cells, mouths wrenched open in soundless screams while others simply lay there, unable to move. He casually steps over the hand that grabs for his ankle.

"Unpleasant, isn't it?" Kabuto asks, as though he were talking about the weather.

Sasuke does't grace the man with a reply but Kabuto simply shakes it off. "Almost there." He nods at another guard and stops at the end of the corridor. He places a hand on the wall and sends a pulse of chakra through. Sasuke feel the ground shift and watches the wall slide to the side and reveal a set of stairs.

"If you survive, I think you'll be coming here often." Kabuto says. He flicks a switch and the light flickers on, revealing the staircase to go down much further than Sasuke had first thought.

Sasuke notices that the smell of blood gets stronger the further down he went.

At the bottom was a simple metal door. Kabuto once again uses his chakra and the door opens with a series of clicks.

Sasuke is about to follow, only for his feet to freeze at the door. The room was simple and was almost identical to his own. However, unlike his room, where the wall paper was a dull shade of grey, this one was a gleaming bright crimson, and it takes him only a second to recognize it as fresh blood.

He forces his eyes to move and they land on lone figure within the room, because the _thing_ this person was crouched by was so deformed that it could only be called a lump of meat.

The person, a girl, Sasuke notices, slowly looks up and Sasuke finds himself looking into the most piercing pair of emerald green eyes he had ever seen. If that hadn't been the most stunning thing about her, it would be her hair, which was a bright shade of pink

"Kabuto?"

At the girl's voice, Sasuke snaps out of whatever trance he had been in. He turns to the man, who was smiling. "Hello, Sakura-chan."

The girl, Sakura, once again turns to look at Sasuke and tilts her head. "Who's that?"

"This is Uchiha Sasuke." Kabuto says. "Orochimaru-sama wants you to entertain him."

Sakura's eyes brighten at the mention of the Snake Sannin and Sasuke comes across the next shock of the day. "Otou-sama?"

He frantically searches his mind for something, _anything_ , about the Snake Sannin having a daughter, but he comes up with nothing. He shoots Kabuto a look but the man simply continues smiling. "Yes."

Sakura stands up, not seeming to mind the splatters of blood that dirties her dress and stains the floor. She bounces over and stops in front of him. "Hi, Sasuke." She smiles, a cheerful expression that did not match her bloody hands. "I'm Sakura."

"Orochimaru-sama needs him alive." Kabuto says slowly. "If you can promise that, you can take him out, okay?"

Sakura blinks a few times, as though she was registering his words, before her smile widens and she nods her head a few times. "Okay."

Kabuto pats Sasuke's shoulder then pulls his hand away before Sasuke can shrug it off. "Don't let her wander off soon her own." He whispers, so that only he can hear. "Good luck." He whispers mockingly. He is gone before Sasuke can stop him. The door closes and Sasuke is left with this mystery girl. He notes that the door hasn't been locked, before he turns back to the pinkette standing in front of him.

"So, Sasuke, what would you like to do?" Sakura takes his hand and Sasuke holds back the urge to yank it free. Sakura simply grins at him and leads him into her room. She pauses beside the body she had previously had her hands buried in and frowns.

"I'll have him taken away later." She mutters, more to herself than to him and turns away from it. She places Sasuke so that he was sitting on her bed and sits next to him. "What do you want to do?" She repeats.

Sasuke is still in a mild state of shock but he forces his thoughts away from it for the moment. "What can we do?" He asks. He glances down at the bloody hands clutching at his sleeve, slowly soaking it crimson. He tells himself to endure it.

"We can go out." Sakura says. "I can show you around!" She jumps to her feet, mind made up. "I stay here most of the time, so I don't really know much, but we can explore."

Sasuke finds that he doesn't have the heart to tell her that he had been here for half a year, more than enough time for him to memorize the layout of the base. Instead, he asks, "You don't go out often?"

Sakura looks at her feet and nods. "I'm not allowed to." She shrugs. "But I can now cause Kabuto said we could." She leans in, eyes wide. "So, would you like to?"

Sasuke simply nods. "Hn."

Sakura frowns at him a little but she accepts his answer. "That's great!"

Sasuke watches her stand and skip towards the door.

He would have to include her in his report back to Konoha.

* * *

 **So...yeah...new story...**

 **We're trying a different style in writing...tell us if it's weird...**

 **Meh.**

 **Leave a review if you like it...Yeah...**

 **Read and Review~**


	2. Chapter 2

**NEW STORY INFO AT THE BOTTOM!**

 _ **Chapter TWO**_

Sasuke follows Sakura as she skips through the base. He notes the way the prisoners go quiet as she came by and how the shinobi shies away, trying not to be seen.

His eyes narrow just a little when Sakura breaks away from the main paths to the side corridors, humming an unknown tune.

She turns a corner and Sasuke realizes something a moment too late and he is too slow to stop his feet from automatically following.

Or perhaps, she was too fast.

A knee thrusts into his stomach with so much more speed and strength than he had thought possible for a frail looking girl like her and in his split second of shock, an elbow ramms into his neck, pinning him against the wall. A hand snatches his left hand and twists it, pressing it against the wall beside his head so that any movement sends spikes of pain running down his arm.

He had underestimated her. Her bright smile, her pink hair and her sundress had made her look innocent, and for a moment, he had forgotten the blood stains on her clothes had come from the person she had been tearing into when he had arrived, and that _nothing_ was innocent within Orochimaru's base.

Sakura leans into him, so much more closer than what he was comfortable with. However, before he could voice his protests, a spark runs through his body, starting from his neck, where his curse mark was.

It was very different from the usual stabs of pain he had associated with the damn thing that for a moment, Sasuke forgets where he is.

Then he feels Sakura's breath on his neck and he is snapped back to reality. Sasuke chokes out a breath and fixes the girl with a glare. "Let go."

Sakura blinks at him, a giddy expression on her face.

"What?" Sasuke tests the hold on his wrist and has to hold back a wince when Sakura tightens her grip.

He could only remember one other person with so much raw strength.

"They say you come from Konoha."

Sasuke's heart involuntarily jumps and he forces himself to calm down.

Not even Orochimaru suspected anything. There was no way this girl who he had known for half an hour, had figured it out.

"Hn."

Sakura's grin widens. "You have to tell me about this place."

Sasuke had been about to snap that, no, he did not _have to_ tell her anything, but his curiosity gets the better of him. He stops fighting and was both annoyed and impressed when Sakura does not loosen her grip.

"The only times I've been outside was when we were moving bases or on missions." Sakura explains. "But I've never been allowed to wander myself or ask any questions." She looks directly into Sasuke's onyx eyes and he wonders if she just wasn't afraid or simply did not know about his Sharingan. "I want you to tell me about the villages and the people...and everything else out there."

Sasuke scowls deeper. "Let go." He repeats.

Sakura huffs but slowly loosens her hold. Sasuke slips out of her grip and moves back a safe distance.

Sakura's eerie green eyes follows his movements and he has to force himself from freezing on the spot. He finds them familiar, as though he had seen them somewhere, a long time ago. He tells himself that it was impossible.

He would have remembered such striking features.

Instead, he asks, "You go out on missions?"

Sakura's eyes brightened and the moment of familiarity is gone as she once again smiled. "Yup." She skips up to him. "I can do loads of things. Maybe we could spar sometime."

Sasuke finds himself unable to not believe her.

There was a reason she was yet to become a test subject, a reason Orochimaru had kept her.

He watches Sakura turn to wave at some guard and decides that she is too gullible. He is sure that he can extract information from her.

Another thought comes to mind. "Orochimaru is your father?"

Sasuke didn't think the mere name of the Snake Sannin could bring such happiness to someone. Sakura's smile widens and for a split second, Sasuke sees a disgusting smile of bloodlust in its place. Then he feels Sakura once again take his sleeve and the moment is gone.

"He is." She says, as though it was the most normal thing in the world.

Sasuke wonders how many lies she has been fed and how much she truly knows about the snake. He doesn't voice this, however, and instead, he tries a different approach. "And your mother?"

"Oka-sama is sleeping." Sakura says.

"Sleeping?"

Sakura nods. "Yup."

Sasuke wants to ask her what she means but he is interrupted before he can.

Kabuto walks up to them, his usual smile in place. Sasuke immediately sculpts his face into an emotionless mask. Sakura blinks a few times before she smiles at the man. "Hi, Kabuto!"

The bespectacled man nods in greeting. "Orochimaru-sama wants you, Sasuke-kun."

There is something relatively wrong with that statement and Sasuke has to force himself to settle with a scowl.

"Otou-sama?" Sakura leans in. "How 'bout me?"

Kabuto turns to Sakura. "Kimimaro is waiting for you in your room, Sakura-chan." He tells her. "Orochimaru-sama has a job for you."

Sasuke has only ever met the Kaguya once, when he had first come to the base. He files this away.

"Mission?" Sakura asks. "Do I get to see Otou-sama before I leave?"

Kabuto smiles and ruffles her hair. Sasuke wants to tell him to stop tainting her, but he doesn't. He tells himself that it is because it is Kabuto and that he would have done the same for any girl.

Sakura doesn't move away like he wants her to. Instead, she pouts and looks down.

"He might if you finish your mission properly." Kabuto offers.

Sakura hums and thinks this over before she nods. "Okay." She turns to Sasuke and places her hands on her hips. "Visit me when I come back?"

"Hn." Sasuke looks away but Sakura simply smiles.

"I will accompany you." Kabuto tells Sakura. "You should hurry too, Sasuke-kun."

Sasuke grunts and turns away.

"Bye Sasuke~"

He risks a glance over his shoulder and sees Sakura waving at him. He tilts his head and walks off.

He tells himself to ignore the unreadable expression on Kabuto's face.

* * *

 **WE ARE LOOKING FOR A STORY...PLEASE TELL US IF YOU KNOW IT.**

 **\- Sasori x Sakura, we think.**

 **\- High school AU**

 **\- They prank someone (Ino?). They knocked her unconscious and dump her in a bathtub full of dye, or something.**

 **\- Sakura says something about not really being friends with Ino and the others, and that they only want to be picked to go on an 'adventure', or something.**

 **PLEASE TELL US IF YOU KNOW/FIND IT!**

* * *

 **NEW STORY:**

 **AND THEY SWORE BENEATH THE FIRE LILIES (Sakura x Neji sibling relationship / Sakura x Multi):**

 **Hyuuga Neji thinks 'Chance' is a stupid word. Such a simple word shouldn't define the power to change one's life. Hyuuga Sakura's world revolved around one person. She knows that once, they've seen the light they could no longer see and heard the song they could no longer hear. The story of a pair of broken siblings unable to escape the fate that has pitted them against the world.**

* * *

 ** _Darque: So, my exam period is starting next week._**

 **Raven: And you are revising?**

 ** _Darque: Uh...no._**

 **Raven: I kind of expected that.**

 ** _Darque: Really?_**

 **Raven: Yes. And so that you know, I am not praising you.**

 _ **Darque: Oh...**_

 **Raven: But try your best, ye?**

 _ **Darque: I will, I think.**_

 **Raven: :)**

 **Read and Review!**


	3. Chapter 3

_**Chapter THREE**_

Sasuke often finds himself spending his free time with Sakura.

The second time he seeks her out is five days after their first meeting. He just happens to overhear some Oto shinobi talking about the girl's return from whatever mission she had been sent out on and before he realizes it, he finds himself standing in front of her locked up room.

He copies what Kabuto did and sends a pulse of chakra through the door. He hears the metal parts moving within and the door opens.

He steps in then hesitates because while Sakura is there, she is lying on her bed, sleeping.

When she doesn't awaken at his entry, he wonders is she is a real shinobi. He knows the amount of sound he made should have woken up even Nara Shikamaru.

Just as he considers leaving, Sakura moves as though she had sensed his thoughts and chooses that moment to wake up. She opens her eyes, her green orbs landing on Sasuke before he can decide whether or not he should stay of bolt.

"Sasuke!" Sakura is sitting up like a bolt. She tries to stand but her sheets catch her ankles and with a yelp, she is tumbling towards the ground. Sasuke reaches out and catches her by the waist before she falls and Sakura lets out a airy "Whoa."

For a second, she hangs limply in his arms and Sasuke, who would have let go in any other circumstance, hesitates, because like this, he can feel just how thin Sakura is. He was sure that he could wrap his hands around her waist, no problem. "You okay?" He finds himself asking.

Sakura shakes her head, as if to clear some thoughts, then nods. "Yup. I just got dizzy. I'm fine now."

Sasuke places her on her feet and Sakura sways for a second, before she straightens herself and she grins. "See?"

Sasuke eyes her skeptically but has no time to dwell on it because Sakura is grabbing his wrist and she sits him down on her bed. "How are you today, Sasuke?"

"Hn." Sasuke looks away, because it has been awhile since he has talked to anyone about nothings and he just came here without knowing what he wants.

Sakura seems to understand, though, because she doesn't press any further. Instead, she begins to talk. "I saw a little boy riding his father's back during my mission." She tells him. "Kimimaro told me that it was called a piggyback."

Sasuke thinks of the time Itachi piggybacked him when he was small. "You've never...?" He trails off.

Sakura hums, though, so she must have understood. "Nope." She taps her chin. "Kimimaro bought a scroll at this stand." She says. "He said it was something about bones." She hums and it takes Sasuke a moment to realize that she is trying to think of things to say, things she had seen.

He decides to press his limits. "What was your mission about?" He asks.

Sakura blinks. "We had to get rid of this man who was selling pieces of paper. Kimimaro wouldn't tell me, but apparently, he's a bad guy, so I killed him."

Sasuke hums softly, not knowing what to say to someone who talks about killing like it is nothing. He knows people like that, but not even they bring it up unless they have to and he has never actually talked to any of them. "Paper?" He asks.

"It had lots of numbers on it." Sakura continues. "I didn't really understand it."

Sasuke wonders how much of the shinobi world Sakura understand. Supposedly being Orochimaru seems to have taught her the skills requires in the physical area but other than that, she is nothing like a ninja. Regardless of not being valuable information, she had just told him the contents of her mission, something all shinobi were taught against.

He gets to his feet and Sakura's eyes follow his movements. "Are you leaving already?" She asks.

Sakura glances over at her. "How about we go to the training grounds?" He suggests. "You said we could spar."

Sakura's eyes brighten and she gets to her feet. Then, as if a sudden thought had hit her, she pauses. "I'm not allowed to go out." She told him. "Otou-sama said so."

"Why not?" Sasuke asks.

"Dunno." She said. "It was never boring in here anyways, cause Kabuto sometimes brings me the failed experiments and he lets me play with them."

Sasuke remembers the lump of flesh he had seen her messing around with the first time he saw her. "Hn." He says, not knowing what else to say.

Sakura hums. "I'll ask Kabuto next time he comes around." She says. "Then maybe we can spar." She smiles at him.

Sasuke nods then quickly leaves, because for a second, he had been tempted to reach out and pat the girl on the head.

* * *

"Kabuto tells me you rejected number 9839." Orochimaru says.

Sakura licks her lips. "Yup."

The Snake Sannin gets up from his throne and gestures for Sakura to follow him. The girl giggles happily and falls into step behind him. "Why's that?" He asks.

"Cause Sasuke doesn't like it." Sakura tells him. "He wouldn't say, but I can tell."

"You like Sasuke-kun?" Orochimaru leads the girl down the stairs, to the third floor where all the experiments are kept.

"I do." Sakura twirls around, gracefully stepping over the hands grabbing for her. "He's nice."

Orochimaru chuckles. He stops in front of one of the cells and opens it. The man inside lunges out and Orochimaru does not even blink. In a split second, Sakura is in front of him and she grabs the man's head with her hand. They are so small they barely cover the attacker's face but it seem to be more than enough for the girl to tighten her grip and crush his skull. There is a sickening crack and Sakura drops the limp man to the ground.

"You weren't supposed to do that, Sakura-chan." Orochimaru scolds lightly. "He was your sparing partner."

"He was number 9839." Sakura says. "I was supposed to kill him anyways."

Orochimaru shrugs. He then walks off and Sakura follows, leaving behind the dead man.

They travel down another set of stairs and Orochimaru leads her into one of the rooms. He sits her down on the dental engine like chair. Sakura places her hand on the armrests without being told and Orochimaru hums. He straps them into place. "How are you feeling today?" He asks.

Sakura wriggles her fingers. "Okay." She says. "Nothing wrong."

"That's good." Orochimaru reaches out and brushes away her hair. He places his hand on the right side of her neck, then her left. He sends a pulse of chakra through. He feels a spiking chakra reacting and smirks.

"You truly are perfect, Sakura-chan."

* * *

 **So, a few more hints/information about Sakura...? Can if even be called that?**

 **This chapter was actually supposed to be Sasuke finding out something but we decided that we wanted one more chapter before things began to go messy...yeah.**

 **Raven: So, currently, Darque is obsessed with this song/rhyme thing and I have to deal with her singing it 24/7.**

 _ **Darque: My mother has killed me, my father is eating me, my brothers and sisters sit under the table, picking up my bones, and they will bury them, under the cold marble stone~**_

 **Raven: Apparently, it's from some English folktale, 'The Rose Tree', or something. Something about a Mother Goose?**

 _ **Darque: My mother has killed me, my father is eating me, my brothers and sisters sit under the table, picking up my bones, and they will bury them, under the cold marble stone~**_

 **Raven: And this is what I have to deal with. Anyone feeling sorry for me?**

 _ **Darque: My mother has killed me, my father is eating me, my brothers and sisters sit under the table, picking up my bones, and they will bury them, under the cold marble stone~**_

 **Raven: I don't mind if none of you do. I'm feeling sorry for myself enough for everyone in the world.**

 _ **Darque: My mother has killed me, my father is eating-**_

 **Raven: IF YOU DON'T SHUT UP, _I_ WILL FRIGGIN KILL YOU AND EAT YOU!**

 **Read and Review~**

* * *

WE ARE LOOKING FOR A STORY...PLEASE TELL US IF YOU KNOW IT.

\- Sasori x Sakura, we think.

\- High school AU

\- They prank someone (Ino?). They knocked her unconscious and dump her in a bathtub full of dye, or something.

\- Sakura says something about not really being friends with Ino and the others, and that they only want to be picked to go on an 'adventure', or something.

PLEASE TELL US IF YOU KNOW/FIND IT!


	4. Chapter 4

_**Chapter FOUR**_

When Sasuke finds himself in front of Sakura's room the next day and she happens to not be there, he wonders what is wrong with him when he finally manages to put a name to the suffocating emotions welling up within him.

He is _not_ disappointed that she isn't present.

As he moves to close Sakura's door behind him, he recalls what she had told him about not being allowed to leave the room on her own and decids that she must be with either Orochimaru or Kabuto. He scowls, not sure why he didn't like the thought of that.

That makes him pause. He slowly turns around and steps back into Sakura's room and for the first time, actually _looks_ at it.

The last time he had come here, he had been too occupied with his thoughts to truly take everything in, which, now that he thinks back to it, is a bad habit to have.

The walls have been cleaned of the blood that had coated it the first time he had been here. It doesn't smell of blood or dead bodies like he had first expected it to.

The structure of the room is just like his, though he scowls when he realizes that her mattress is a tad bit softer than his.

The walls are a dull grey with white pastel drawings on it and the one of someone piggybacking another catches his eye. Careful not to brush it, he inspects it, surprised to find that it is actually very good. Beside it is an arrow and a label '負んぶ', for piggyback.

As he reaches out to touch it, Sasuke hears the mechanics within the door moving and he realizes with a start that while he knows there is someone outside, he can't sense them. At all. He quickly draws back his hand and thinks of the mechanism within the metal door and wonders what sort of seal allowed it to completely block out the chakra signatures of the outside.

He wipes any expressions off his face and takes a casual stance. He hears the last of the locks move out of the way and the door slowly opens.

Kaguya Kimimaro steps into the room, expression blank. He doesn't seem surprised by Sasuke's presence and Sasuke notes that while he can't sense out, he had been able to sense in.

The Kaguya nods. "Uchiha Sasuke."

Sasuke narrows his eyes just a little. "Kaguya Kimimaro."

The white haired teen closes his eyes. "Sakura has told me a lot about you." The door closes behind him.

Sasuke shrugs. "Unfortunate to say she hasn't said much about you."

Kimimaro did not react. He simply looks at him with hooded eyes. "What are you doing here?"

Sasuke stiffens. "That is none of your business."

"It is." Kimimaro says. "Sakura is due to leave on a mission with me at noon."

"I just came by." Sasuke says. "She wasn't here when I arrived."

"I see." Kimimaro steps into the room and moves to lean on the wall by the entrance. "And knowing she wasn't here, you entered anyways."

Sasuke narrows his eyes but is saved from having to think of an response when they hear the clatter of footsteps from outside.

There is a knock and Kimimaro moves to press his hand against the door. "The seal is set so that anyone but Sakura can open it." He explains quietly.

Sasuke opens his mouth but Sakura chooses that moment to shove the door open and he bites down on his tongue.

Sakura skips in and waves happily at him. "Sasuke!"

"Hn." The Uchiha nods stiffly and Sakura giggles before turning around to face Kimimaro.

"Hi Kimimaro."

The Kaguya offers the girl a soft smile. "Has Kabuto informed you of our mission?"

Sakura nods. "Go to the Northern hideout and help out with Jugo."

Kimimaro sighs. "I believe I told you this last time. You are not suppose to blurt out the contents of your mission to everyone and anyone." He says, though he doesn't really seem to mind, as though he is already used to it.

Sakura pauses in her steps. "I'm not?" She asks. "You did?"

Kimimaro's eyes darken a little. He reaches out and gently ruffles Sakura's pink locks. "Where were you just now?" He asks softly.

She preens under his touch and Sasuke is reminded of a cat. "I was with Kabuto." She says.

"When was the last time you saw Orochimaru-sama?"

Sakura frowns. "Uh..." She bites her bottom lip and let out a soft hum. "I...have no idea..."

"Hm." Kimimaro hums and with one last ruffle, pulls away. "You should prepare." He tells her. "I'll wait."

Sakura skips over to her wardrobe and began shuffling through her clothes, probably looking for something a little more practical than her sundress.

Sasuke watches them with an unreadable expression. At one point, he catches Kimimaro's eye and the white haired teen sends him a fierce look. Sasuke does not dare look away and meets his gaze challengingly.

He does not know what the Kaguya is thinking and he does not like it one bit.

Sakura draws back with a bundle of clothes in her arms and promptly begins to strip.

Kimimaro sighs and looks away. Sasuke quickly follows, wondering if this was a common occurrence. He hears the rustle of clothes being tossed to the side and once it stops, waits a few more second just to be safe. When he turns around, it is just in time to see Sakura sweep her hair away from her face. For a second, he thinks he sees something dark surrounding her but when he blinks, it is gone.

Sakura skips up to him and twirls around. "Does it suit me?" She asks.

Sakura is wearing a red and light pink kimono with impractically long sleeves that goes over her hands and a red skirt with slits on the sides to aid with movement. It is held together with a matching thick red obi tied to the side into a ribbon. Underneath, she wore a pair of black leggings and she has strapped a weapons pouch around each thigh. In addition to that, she has on a pair of calf length shinobi sandals and has a pair of gloves clutches in her hands.

Sasuke remembers hearing this line from girls all the time when he had been in Konoha but this time, it felt different. Still, he has no idea what to say. "Hn."

Sakura smiles, though, and she moves towards Kimimaro. "I'm ready."

Kimimaro nods at her and turns towards the door. Sasuke follows behind the pair and once outside, Sakura turns around to face him. "I'll see if I can find you a gift!" She exclaims. "So come find me when I come back, okay?"

Sasuke can't help but ask. "What do you expect to find in one of Orochimaru's hideouts?"

At this, Sakura blinks. "I heard that a gift is something you give someone without payment." She says. "Anything can be a gift, right?"

Sasuke can only nod to that, because in a way, it probably is true.

Mentally blaming Sakura's light grip on his wrist, he walks the two of them to the gates of the hideout.

Kimimaro is the first to step out but he pauses to wait for Sakura. The girl turns to looks at Sasuke and waves. "Bye!" She calls.

Sasuke hesitates, before slowly raising a hand to wave.

Sakura grins. She then spins on her heels and takes off after Kimimaro. Once she has caught up, Kimimaro turns and the two of them vanish into the trees.

Once they are out of sight, Sasuke lets the thoughts that had been chased away by Sakura's cheery atmosphere regather in his head.

What has caught his attention the most is Kimimaro's short exchange with Sakura.

It isn't only the hair ruffling that bothers him.

Kimimaro had looked too...upset for it to be about Sakura not being able to recall when she had last seen Orochimaru.

Frustrated but not knowing why, Sasuke turns to make his way back to his room. He needs to think.

* * *

 **So, here:s chapter four.**

 **Next chapter will be written in Kimimaro's point of view...yeah...**

 **Also, in this story, Kimimaro DOES NOT have his illness/disease thing.**

 **Yeah.**

 _ **Darque: Anyone here play Aura Kingdom?**_

 **Raven: Here she goes.**

 _ **Darque: Cause is anyone does, we can be friends-**_

 **Raven: -Please be her friend, she barely has any-**

 _ **Darque: And if you don't, you should cause it's awesome!**_

 **Raven: Yes, yes.**

 **Read and Review!**

* * *

WE ARE LOOKING FOR A STORY...PLEASE TELL US IF YOU KNOW IT.

\- Sasori x Sakura, we think.

\- High school AU

\- They prank someone (Ino?). They knocked her unconscious and dump her in a bathtub full of dye, or something.

\- Sakura says something about not really being friends with Ino and the others, and that they only want to be picked to go on an 'adventure', or something.

PLEASE TELL US IF YOU KNOW/FIND IT!


	5. Chapter 5

_**Chapter FIVE**_

Kimimaro and Sakura traveled at a rapid pace towards the Northern Hideout. They were to get there by sunfall and would begin their mission the next morning.

Once in a while, Kimimaro glances over his shoulder, knowing that Sakura is right behind him but not being able to reassure himself until he actually sees her.

And every time, Sakura looks up and upon meeting his gaze, would smile at him.

Kimimaro remembers the first time he met Sakura almost as clearly as the day his clan decided to attack Kirigakure.

 _He had been ten when he had been found by Orochimaru and two years later, he had accompanied the Snake Sannin to the Northern Hideout for the first time._

 _Kimimaro had of course heard rumors about the hideout in the North. It was said to hold some of Orochimaru's more dangerous experiments. The former Konoha nin was going to check on a few of his most prized products and Kimimaro was to tag along._

" _I have a gift for you, Kimimaro-kun." Orochimaru had said. "I need to make sure's it's appropriate before I give it to you, though."_

 _The structure of the North had been just like all the others. However, Kimimaro could already tell that this one was slightly different. The air had been damp and close to suffocating. The screams were three times as worse and the smell of blood clung on to everything._

 _Orochimaru had instructed him to rest for the night. "There is someone I want you to meet." He said. "But you'll probably want to refresh first."_

 _Kimimaro had just woken up the day after their arrival when a servant had come to get him. "Orochimaru-sama would like your presence."_

 _Kimimaro followed the man down to the most lowest floor of the base and had been told to wait there. A few minutes later he heard a loud_ _ **THUMP**_ _from right outside, like something had fallen down the stairs. For the next following moments, nothing could be heard, and just as Kimimaro had been about to open the door to check, someone else opened it a lump of pink had crawled in._

 _Kimimaro's first thought had been to kill it._

 _However, upon inspection, he realized that it was a small girl, probably younger than him. The first thing that caught his eye was her pink hair._

 _As he watched, unsure of what to do, the girl slowly raised her head and Kimimaro was met with the most eerie eyes he had ever seen._

" _Eres O-ama?" She said. However, her words were slurred and Kimimaro could not make out what she had said. He carefully stepped up to her, not sure what to think about the fact that Orochimaru seemed to be using little girls in his experiments. Perhaps she held some sort of Kekkei Genkai?_

 _When he crouched down in front of her, she slowly reached out towards him. Kimimaro hesitated before he offered her a finger. The girl wrapped her smaller hands around it. He noted that she was shivering and her skin was cold to the touch._

" _Ih urhs." She murmured. She reached up and clawed at her neck. Upon inspection, Kimimaro noticed the three curved lines on the right side of her neck._

 _Kimimaro slowly reached out and took her other hand before she could draw blood. Just as he had been about to say something, he heard the sound of approaching footsteps and looked up just in time to see Orochimaru step through the door._

 _Kimimaro quickly drew back and stood up._

 _Orochimaru simply chuckled and crouched down beside the girl. "You can't go running off like that, Sakura-chan." He said, tone much softer that Kimimaro had expected._

 _The girl reached out towards the Snake Sannin. "To-ama." She gasped out. "Ih urts."_

 _Orochimaru reached out and ruffled her hair. "Bare with it, okay?"_

 _The girl hummed and tried to tuck her knees to her chest but before she could, Orochimaru lifted her into his arms. "Come, Kimimaro-kun."_

 _Kimimaro obediently followed Orochimaru into the room and crouched in front of the man when he sat down on a chair._

" _Sakura-chan, this is Kimimaro-kun." He said. "He'll be your playmate for a while."_

 _Kimimaro kept his face blank at the title._

" _Kimimaro-kun, this Sakura-chan." Orochimaru smirked. "My daughter."_

* * *

 _It was two days later when Orochimaru brought up the Curse mark for the first time._

 _After hours of agonizing pain, he was able to look down at the Cursed Mark of the Earth. Kimimaro immediately recognized the mark._

" _Orochimaru-sama-"_

 _Orochimaru's smirk widened. "I had to make sure the bearer would be able to survive, right?" He chuckled. "Sakura-chan~"_

 _There was a scuffle of feet and Sakura scrambled into the room. She looked much better compared to two days ago. Her hair had been combed and she was now wearing a white sundress in place of the hospital garb like clothes she had previously worn. Still, Kimimaro's eyes lingered on the right side of her neck, identical to the one on his chest._

 _He clearly remembered the pain. Had this girl gone through the same?_

" _Who's he, Otou-sama?" Sakura asked._

 _Kimimaro could clearly remember that Orochimaru had introduced them two days ago. However, Orochimaru simply chuckled._

" _This is Kaguya Kimimaro-kun." He said. "Your new playmate."_

 _Sakura blinked. "Hello, Kimimaro."_

 _Kimimaro nodded, unsure of how he was supposed to treat the girl. "Hello, Sakura."_

 _The girl smiled happily at him and reached out towards him. Kimimaro hesitated, then took her hands. He felt a sudden jolt, the first ever warm sensation coming from the curse mark._

" _Hi Kimimaro." She repeated. "I'm Sakura, and I'm nine."_

 _Kimimaro smiled and slowly ruffled her hair. "Nice to meet you, Sakura."_

 _Sakura giggled and turned towards Orochimaru. "Otou-sama, may I go show Kimimaro my room?"_

 _Orochimaru nodded. "You do that." He turned to face the Kaguya. "But first, I need to talk to Kimimaro-kun."_

 _Sakura blinked and darted over to the door on the far side of the room._

" _You are not to let her wander anywhere by herself." The Snake Sannin said. "If she wants to go out, you must come to me and ask for permission."_

" _Of course, Orochimaru-sama."_

 _Orochimaru nodded. "You may leave."_

 _Kimimaro bowed before he turned towards Sakura. The girl darted up to him and grabbed onto his hand. "This way." She said, then tugged him out of the door._

* * *

"Kimimaro?"

The Kaguya blinks and shakes his head to clear his thoughts. "Yes?"

Sakura grins at him. "Where's almost there."

Kimimaro nods. "I am aware."

Sakura hums. "Just thought you should know." She twirls around. "I wonder how Jugo is. It's been a while~"

She speeds up and Kimimaro follows without a second thought.

He has sworn, a long time ago, that he will look out for this girl who couldn't look out for herself.

* * *

 **So, a bit from Kimimaro and a little on Sakura's past.**

 _ **Darque: I really like Kimimaro.**_

 **Raven: I can tell**

 _ **Darque: Can you?**_

 **Raven: We do have a lot of Kimimaro related things in our fics.**

 _ **Darque: Well, he's kinda cool and I wanted to give him more of a 'main character' role instead of a 'leech off his powers' role.**_

 **Raven: I see...Well, dear readers, we have another story planned. We just need the male main character. Maybe Kimimaro would take that role?**

 _ **Darque: The only problem with him is that he doesn't have any story beyond Sasuke's retrieval mission. We have no idea what he'd do after that...**_

 **Raven: Well, yeah. Writers block, school, exams, life problems.**

 ** _Darque: Is it even called 'Writers block' if we don't have the story written out yet?_**

 **Read and Review~**

* * *

WE ARE LOOKING FOR A STORY...PLEASE TELL US IF YOU KNOW IT.

\- Sasori x Sakura, we think.

\- High school AU

\- They prank someone (Ino?). They knocked her unconscious and dump her in a bathtub full of dye, or something.

\- Sakura says something about not really being friends with Ino and the others, and that they only want to be picked to go on an 'adventure', or something.

PLEASE TELL US IF YOU KNOW/FIND IT!


	6. Chapter 6

_**Chapter SIX**_

Two days later, Sakura is back and Sasuke, as promised, visits her in the evening, after his own training with Orochimaru. When he knocks and enters, Kimimaro is nowhere to be seen but Sakura is sitting on her bed. She looks up when Sasuke enters and skips over to greet him.

"Hi Sasuke!"

Sakura grins and Sasuke had to bite down on his lip to stop himself from returning it.

He thinks about what he has spent the last two weeks doing, which was writing a report back to Konoha and scouting around for information on Sakura, and manages to suppress his smile.

In the end, he will have to betray this girl.

She was Orochimaru's daughter, after all.

"I got you a gift Sasuke." Sakura grabs his hand and forces him to sit on her bed. Sasuke thinks this situation is highly inappropriate and knows his mother will throw a fit if she ever finds out he is sitting in a room with a girl around the same age as him.

He pauses. "How old are you, Sakura?" He asks.

Sakura blinks and she fiddles with her fingers. "Fourteen." She says. She holds up ten fingers, then another four. "I'm turning fifteen in two months."

Sasuke hums. She is a few months younger than him, then. They would probably have been in the same class in the Academy.

He watches Sakura dart over to her table and she comes back with a scroll. "Here." She held it out. "The gift."

Sasuke carefully takes the scroll and after a second of hesitation, summon's it's content. He stares, a little surprised. He had been dreading something along the lines of someone's arm, or perhaps an eyeball, but this actually looks pretty normal.

"Kimimaro said they wouldn't need it anymore." Sakura tells him. "So I just picked a few." She grins.

Sasuke picks up what he distinctively remembers seeing a Kiri shinobi using. He next inspects a kunai with the square hilt, then the one with the curved blade.

He quickly counted twelve different types of kunai.

"I didn't know what to get." Sakura admits. "But it seemed cool." She raised her hand. "I've once seen this kunai with three blades but I couldn't find it."

Sasuke hums and runs his finger over the tip of the kunai with a second blade jutting of the the side, almost like a hachiwara. "No, it's fine." He wonders if he should start a kunai collection. He places the kunai back onto the scroll and reseals them. "It..."

He trails off but Sakura simply grins at him and he thinks she understands what he cannot bring himself to say.

A though suddenly hits him and he remembers what he had been doing before he came over. "You want to spar?" He asks.

Sakura frowns. "I'm not-"

"I asked Orochimaru." Sasuke cuts in. He holds up his sword. "He said okay."

Sakura brightened. "Really?" She grins. "That's so cool! The only people who actually spar with me are tou-sama and Kabuto and Kimimaro and sometimes Jugo but not all of them are free all the time and-" She twirls around to face him. "This is so exciting."

Sasuke shakes his head slowly and allows the girl to drag him to the door. He opens it and Sakura darts out.

The two of them reach an area Sakura says is hers and Sasuke quickly inspects the grounds.

"No weapon?" He asks.

Sakura nods. "Nope."

"Hn." Sasuke decides to wait before unsheathing his sword and takes a stance at one side of the field. He waits for Sakura to make her way opposite him. Usually, he doesn't really care if the opponent is ready or not but he tells himself that it is because his opponent is a girl.

Sakura spins on her spot and nods. "Any time."

Sasuke wonders if he should let her attack first but Sakura shows no signs of moving. He decides that he first wants to measure out her skills and shoots forward.

He starts taijutsu and is surprised and unexplainably pleased when Sakura easily keeps up with him. He notes that Sakura knows how to use her size and weight to dodge past his attacks.

He also realizes that she has a habit of trying to move behind him and use his weight against him. While heavier than Sakura, he is nowhere near heavy enough to be knocked down by his own weight. However, he knows that this is a very effective method when fighting against people much bigger than you and he does not like what her fighting style connotes.

He decides to move it up a notch and jumps away. He launches a katon jutsu her way and nearly bites his tongue when the earth starts shaking. He sees cracks appear and a slab of rock shoots up from the ground. His fireball hits it and Sakura streaks out from behind the earth, unharmed. She jumped and raises her fists and the only thing that stops Sasuke from receiving a skull shattering conclusion is years of honed shinobi instincts and he manages to substitute with bits of broken earth. He sees the ground where he had been standing a second earlier shatter like a dropped ceramic plate and he releases the breath he hasn't realized he has been holding.

Sakura turns to him, a smug grin on her face.

Sasuke cannot help but ask. "What you just did is similar to someone I know." He says.

"Senju Tsunade?" Sakura asks. "Current Hokage of Konohagakure?"

Sasuke nods. He guesses that even locked up daughters of Orochimaru knows the Slug Princess turned Hokage.

Sakura hums thoughtfully. "Tou-sama taught me." She tells him. "He says I need to know lots of stuff to be of use to him."

Sasuke's eyes darken but he is careful to not let anything show on his face. "I see."

Sakura smiles and flashes through two hand seals before she pulls back her left fist. Sasuke tenses, preparing himself for another earth shattering punch, when Sakura simply makes a punching motion. Sasuke sees something move under Sakura's sleeve before half a dozen snakes shoots out at him. "Sennei Jashu!"

Sasuke instantly recognizes this technique as one from Orochimaru's arsenal and jumped to dodge the first blow. Feeling unsure, he slit the throats of the next two snakes. He uses the fourth as a launching pad and twists around the fifth that came at him. Sakura's eyes widened just a little as he approaches. "Uh oh." She cuts off her link with the snakes and shoots backwards. Sasuke easily keeps up and Sakura raises her hands and flashes through another set of hand seals.

"Futon: Daitoppa!"

Sasuke jumped up in the last second, managing to avoid being smashed into he wall behind him. Even when out of direct range, he can feel the power of the wind technique. He slowly reaches up a hand to his face but before he can activate his Sharingan, they are interrupted by the sound of clapping.

Orochimaru stands at the mouth of the training grounds, a smile on his face.

"Tou-sama!" Sakura runs up to the Snake Sannin and preens when he ruffles her hair.

"Hello, Sakura-chan, Sasuke-kun." Orochimaru turns to look at Sasuke. "Unfortunately, I'll have to stop you there." He pulls his hand away from Sakura and gleefully watches Sasuke slowly approach. "Sakura-chan, you have another mission with Kimimaro-kun. He is waiting for you in your room."

Sakura pouts but nods. "Mkay."

"Walk her back, will you, Sasuke-kun?" Orochimaru asks.

"Hn." Sasuke allows Sakura to take his wrist and lead him out. He can feel Orochimaru's gaze boring into his back and is grateful when Sakura quickens her pace.

"I didn't know I had a mission today." Sakura says. "It's been a while since I had more than one mission a week." She stops in front of her room. "I'll be back soon, so don't be lonely, okay?"

Sasuke snorts. "As if."

Sakura giggles and Sasuke opens her door for her.

"We can spar again." Sasuke says quickly. "When you come back."

Sakura's eyes brightens and she nods. "Okay." She takes Sasuke's hands. "I can't wait."

Sasuke smiles faintly and watches Sakura enter her room before he turns away.

His next report to Konoha is due soon.

* * *

 **So, here's chapter six~**

 _ **Darque: I'm tired.**_

 **Raven: I know.**

 _ **Darque: You do?**_

 **Raven: Yes. It tends to happen, you know, when you sleep at three in the morning.**

 _ **Darque: Oh.**_

 **Raven: Yes. _Oh_. So stop playing games and sleep.**

 _ **Darque: But then I wont have time to play games.**_

 **Raven: If that is how your logic works, no wonder you're tired.**

 _ **Darque: What does that mean?**_

 **Raven: No, nothing. Just go to sleep.**

 _ **Darque:...Okay. Just this once.**_

 **Raven: Why does it sound like you're doing this for me?**

 **Read and Review~**

* * *

WE ARE LOOKING FOR A STORY...PLEASE TELL US IF YOU KNOW IT.

\- Sasori x Sakura, we think.

\- High school AU

\- They prank someone (Ino?). They knocked her unconscious and dump her in a bathtub full of dye, or something.

\- Sakura says something about not really being friends with Ino and the others, and that they only want to be picked to go on an 'adventure', or something.

PLEASE TELL US IF YOU KNOW/FIND IT!


	7. Chapter 7

**_Chapter SEVEN_**

Sakura is back a few days later, but not under the circumstances Sasuke had expected. He is present when Kimimaro enters the room, the pinkette in his arms. He, Kabuto and Orochimaru all look up at the sound of the door opening.

The girl is clearly unconscious and her head is lying limply on the Kaguya's chest. Her eyes are closed but her expression holds no discomfort.

Sasuke stays rooted to his spot as Kimimaro approaches Orochimaru and gracefully lowers into a respectful crouch. The snake Sannin does not say anything but Kimimaro seems to understand what he wants. "We were attacked on our way back. They were better than we had originally anticipated." He admits. "Sakura activated..." He shifts a little and carcasses the left side of Sakura's neck, expression unreadable.

"And she overheated." Orochimaru says. He sighs.

"The strain it puts her body under is much worse than what I feel." Kimimaro says. "She-"

Orochimaru raises his hand, effectively stopping the white haired teen. "You are dismissed, Kimimaro. Kabuto, take her."

The grey haired man takes Sakura from the Kaguya and leaves the room. Kimimaro bows one more time before he too departs.

* * *

A day later, Sasuke is finally permitted to see Sakura.

As he makes his way down the stairs to the room the servant had pointed him out to, he comes to a worrying conclusion.

He is drawn to her.

It isn't the type of attraction the fan girls back home claimed to feel for him.

He is simply drawn in by the air of innocence and pureness she radiates. Despite everything, Sakura is the most innocent thing one could find in Orochimaru's base. When beside her, he is shielded from the contaminated air of the snake's lair. He is blind from the deformed lumps that used to be humans and deaf from the echoing screams.

Sakura always greets him with what he thinks is a genuine smile and a hug he could no longer bring himself to mind.

He should have expected it.

Orochimaru seems to have this thing for ruining Sasuke's life.

He opens the door and freezes in his steps.

Sitting in the middle of all the pipes and cords and wires is a single human test tube filled with a blue liquid giving off a faint glow. Floating within the container with metal restraints and an air mask over her face is Sakura.

* * *

Orochimaru chooses that moment to walk into the room. Sasuke immediately whirls around to face him. Whatever he had been about to say never leaves his mouth as Orochimaru beats him to it. "You should be grateful, Sasuke-kun." He says. "It is thanks to her that your Curse Seal isn't eating your body away.

Sasuke resists the urge to flinch at the mention of the Seal and instead, he fixes the man with a glare. "What do you mean?" He demands.

In reply, Orochimaru simply flicks one of the many switches on the walls.

Sakura's eyes are open in a flash. Her green gaze meets Sasuke's onyx ones for a brief moment before hers are wrenched away to look at the ceiling.

Bubbles begin to escape from her mask and it takes Sasuke a second to realize that she is screaming.

He has to force himself to slowly turn to face a smiling Orochimaru. "What the fuck are you doing?"

Orochimaru blinks innocently at him in a bad imitation of Sakura. "Just watch, Sasuke-kun."

Sasuke turns back to Sakura, who is now struggling in her restraints. He sees something that makes his blood freeze.

There is something black on the right side of her neck and it was slowly growing, as though it was eating away at her skin.

He immediately recognizes it.

He is about to say something when he sees another mark on the other side of her throat. These marks are slightly different to the flame like marks he is familiar with.

"That's Kimimaro-kun's Curse Seal, the marks of the Curse Seal of Earth." Orochimaru says. "I had to test them to make sure that they are actually bearable. Unlike the ones of the Sound Four, no normal experiment could survive the pain of the Heaven and Earth marks. I had to take extreme measures."

The snake turns to look at Sakura and had Sasuke not just heard that the man had been testing Curse Marks on his own daughter, he would have thought it was fondness he had seen in his gaze. The black marks have eaten away at half her body and Sakura's struggling had begun to weaken though Sasuke couldn't tell if it was due to exhaustion or not.

"That's enough." Sasuke say, hoping his tone sounded cold and detached and not panicked and desperate as he felt.

Orochimaru turns curiously to him.

"Isn't she you own daughter?" Sasuke asks.

"She is." Orochimaru says easily. "That is why she was able to survive not one, but two Curse Marks. Her chakra is similar to mine-"

"Why would you do something like that to your own daughter?" Sasuke demands. "You-"

"Why, Sasuke-kun." Orochimaru asks, a mocking smile on his face. "Do you, perhaps, care?"

* * *

Sasuke returns to his room late at night and is surprised to see Kimimaro waiting in front of his door.

The Kaguya looks up and meets his gaze without flinching. "Uchiha." Kimimaro nods briefly in greeting.

"Kaguya." Sasuke nods back.

Kimimaro reaches into his robe and pulls something out. He holds out the scroll.

Sasuke's eyes instantly narrow and his Sharingan blazes to life. In a flash, he is in front of Kimimaro. He snatches the scroll and jumped back. "Where did you get it."

"I wonder." Kimimaro shrugs. "I could not open it, but I doubt it is a mission scroll from Orochimaru-sama." He narrows his eyes. "From Konoha, perhaps?"

Sasuke reaches for his sword. He would have to dispose of the Kaguya. If he knew, it would only be a matter of time before it reaches Orochimaru's ears.

Kimimaro falls into a defensive stance but does not move to attack. "Fret not, Uchiha, Orochimaru-sama does not know."

The work 'yet' floats between them, unsaid.

"What do you want, Kaguya?" Sasuke snarls. He knows that even if Orochimaru does not learn about it from Kimimaro, if one of his most loyal follows turn up dead, he would suspect something, especially because with Sakura down and Kabuto as loyal as a dog, Sasuke is probably the only one strong enough to kill him.

Kimimaro looks directly into his eyes and slowly loosens his stance. "When you leave..." He trails off.

Sasuke tenses, wondering if his actions had been so obvious that someone he had barely met a handful of times knew of his plans.

Kimimaro takes a deep breath. "When you leave, I want you to take Sakura with you."

* * *

 **Ooooo...Kiiii** **miiiii** **maaaa** **aroooooo**

 **Raven: What the hell is ^ That? (It was written by Darque)**

 _ **Darque: It is my way of expression my thoughts regarding this chapter.**_

 **Raven:...And what exactly are you thoughts?**

 _ **Darque: Didn't you read it? It's Kiiimiiii**_ _ **i-**_

 **Raven: Gah, stop! Forget I asked.**

 _ **Darque: But you asked.**_

 **Raven: I know. So forget I asked.**

 _ **Darque: You can't just tell someone to forget something.**_

 **Raven: Well, you don't have a hard time forgetting math equations, so it can't be that hard, right?**

 **Read and Review~**


	8. Chapter 8

_**Chapter SEVEN**_

Sasuke opens the scroll and activates his Sharingan. He knows that even if Kimimaro had handed the letter to Orochimaru, he wouldn't have been able to see anything. The letter was written in a genjutsu casted by the Sharingan and was only visible under the Sharingan. He reads the reply from Konoha, the usual letter telling him that his report had been received.

However, there is something else attached to it and his gaze darkens when he reads it.

The time was soon, it seems.

* * *

Sakura is back in her room when Sasuke visits her the next day. She greets him with a happy smile and for a moment, Sasuke forgets everything that had occurred in the past few days. Then he sees the Curse Mark on either side of her neck and everything comes crashing back down. He looks at the tattoo marks and bitterly wonders how he hadn't seen it before. It contrasted greatly with her pale skin, staining her with its evil whispers.

"How...How are you?" Sasuke asks.

Sakura blinks in confusion and she bounces over to him, eyes wide. "What do you mean?" She asks. "I'm perfectly fine." She says. "Nothing wrong."

Sasuke eyes Sakura's smile, trying to see if it was real or forced.

"Do you remember what happened during your mission?" He asks.

Sakura blinks. "Well, we killed the target, and then we were coming back, then these people appeared and attacked us!" Sakura jumps to her feet and scowls. "They were so weird but they were actually pretty strong."

"How did you get away?" Sasuke asks quietly.

Sakura turns to him. "I used the Curse Mark." She says. "It tires me out, though, so I don't know what happened after the weird pair ran away."

Sasuke leans in and finds himself reaching for Sakura without even knowing it. He tenses and pulls his hand back. "Doesn't it hurt?" He asks.

Sakura shakes her head. "Nope, not really."

Sasuke does not know if he believes her anymore. Orochimaru had admitted to having experimented on her. Who knows how much they had messed with her body.

"By the way, Sasuke." Sakura bounds over to him. "I requested a mission with you!"

Sasuke blinks. "What?"

"My next mission." She says. "I asked if I could do it with you."

"You did?" Sasuke asks. "And..."

"Tou-sama said yes." Sakura giggled. "I can't wai-"

Sasuke's body reacted on its own. He tugs Sakura towards him by her wrist before she collapses and he just about manages to stop the both of them from falling to the ground. Sakura groans and Sasuke lets her use his shirt to clamber back to her feet. "You okay?" He asks.

Sakura nods. "Sorry, I was just dizzy for a second."

Sasuke nudges her towards her bed and keeps a grip on her arm, in case she falls again. "You haven't fully recovered." He says. "Rest." He pushes her down on her futon and after a second of hesitation, sits on the floor beside her.

Sakura plops down on the mattress. "Tell me about Konoha, Sasuke." She closes her eyes and hums. "You promised to."

Sasuke glances over at her and sighs, but there is a small smile on his face. "Hn."

Sakura turns over to face him. "Come on."

Sasuke thinks for a second then decides to start at the most easiest place.

He tells her about Namikaze Naruto, his best friend/rival. He tells her about his obsession with ramen and the color orange. He tells her about Naruto's parents, his former Hokage father and Red Hot Habanero mother. He tells her about Hatake Kakashi, his Jounin instructor but leaves out the bit about he porn. He tells her about his brother, Uchiha Itachi, who was clan heir and probably the most skilled shinobi he knows and about Uchiha Shisui, the most un-Uchiha-like Uchiha ever. He tells her about his own parents, his kind, caring mother and power obsessed father. He leaves out that they, along with all but three Uchiha are dead and he also leaves out the massacre, because he does not want to ruin that smile.

Sakura listens.

She giggles when he shares a particularly funny story, like their endless days chasing after Tora the cat, and widens her eyes when he tells her something surprising, like how their first ever mission outside the village had turned into an A rank.

"What about your female teammate?" Sakura asks curiously. "You haven't said anything about her?"

Sasuke makes a face. "Her name is Watanabe Ami." He says. "She only got to where she was because of me and Naruto." His scowl deepens. "She is the most annoying thing I've ever seen."

Sakura giggles.

"I wouldn't have minded if you had been our teammate." He says quietly.

Sakura turns to him. "Really?" She asks.

Sasuke tenses, for he hadn't really meant for her to hear it. Still, he nods. "Yeah." He smiles a little. "Naruto would have liked you too, I think."

Sakura grins back. "I want to meet Naruto too." She says. "They we can all be friends!" She begins talking about all the things they could do together and as Sasuke watches her green eyes glow even in the slightly dim lights, he understood where Kimimaro was coming from.

If she stayed under Orochimaru, she would break. The light in her eyes would dim and the only thing stopping her from truly becoming a monster, a tool of murder, her _innocence_ , would slowly be shaved away until she became a blank shell, because this was what she had grown up with and she couldn't protest against it, for she simply didn't know any better.

* * *

"When do I get the mission with Sasuke?" Sakura asks.

Orochimaru looks over his shoulder and chuckles. "Excited?"

Sakura nods. "Yup. Can't wait." She catches the fist that flies towards her face but stops before she crushes it. She stares at the struggling limb for a second before she shoves it back into the cage. The attacker hits the back of the container but he is clearly alive.

Orochimaru watches with narrowed eyes but shifts his expression before she notices.

"So, when do I get to go?" She asks.

Orochimaru hums thoughtfully. "I'm still looking for the perfect job." He says. "You want the best, don't you?"

Sakura nods. "Yup." She grins and twirls on her spot.

Orochimaru opens the door to a room and Sakura sits on the chair. Orochimaru once again cuffs down her wrists. "Ready to start?"

"Of course." Sakura smiles and leans back.

Orochimaru runs a pulse of chakra through her and feels the Curse mark reaction with both his and her chakra. Sakura gasps and both the Cursed Mark of Heaven and the Cursed Mark of the Earth begin spreading at once.

Orochimaru notes that all the other inferior Curse Marks aren't reacting at all. Maybe the stronger two Curse Marks had absorbed them. He removes the bandages from around Sakura's wrists and notes that the Curse Mark there is gone. Perhaps her latest Curse Mark activated had swallowed it.

He retrieves a kunai from his sleeve and brings it over her head. "Bare with it, okay, Sakura-chan?"

He stabs her.

Sakura lets out a choked scream as the kunai goes through her chest. The two Cursed Marks on either side of her neck begin to burn and they began spreading faster than before. They stop just as they are about to meet each other.

"Just a little more~" Orochimaru yanks out the kunai and stabs her a second time.

Sakura lets out another strangled scream and the two patterns of the Curse Marks clash. There is a pause before they begin to absorb each other and a completely new mark begin forming before his very eyes.

Sakura lets out a guttural growl and tugs on her chains but Orochimaru had made sure to use chakra restraints. It would be troublesome if she tore through and escaped before he could complete his notes. They had never gotten this far before the pain had knocked her out, after all.

"You are truly amazing, Sakura-chan." Orochimaru chuckles and looks over his shoulder. "Don't you agree, Sasuke-kun?"

* * *

 **Oo...Ooooooo...Oooooooooooooo...OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO**

 _ **Darque: That ^ is what I think about this chapter.**_

 **Raven: And, uh... what does that mean?**

 _ **Darque: It is exactly as it is.**_

 **Raven: Haven't we done this before?**

 _ **Darque: I think we have.**_

 **Raven: Why are you saying the same thing?  
**

 _ **Darque: Why can't you just accept it? Some things cannot be expressed with existing words.**_

 **Raven: You need to translate it for all the normal people who cannot understand crazynese.**

 _ **Darque: Excuse me?**_ **R _u_ D** _E._

 **Raven: Whoa...**

 **Read and Review~**


	9. Chapter 9

_**Chapter NINE**_

Sasuke spends the rest of the day thinking about Kimimaro's words. While he knows Sakura needs to be pulled out before it was too late, he doesn't know when the right time would be or if she would even agree to leave with him.

The orders from Konoha had been clear. He was to kill Orochimaru, spend the next half a year destroying the rest of his bases, then return to Konoha.

He has no idea how Sakura would react to him killing her father. While she seems to not bat an eye at the idea of killing in cold blood, he knows that it will probably be like losing the one existence she had used to root herself down to the ground.

Would he, someone who had barely known her for a year, be enough to keep her on her feet?

Then there was the fact that he didn't know if he could trust Kimimaro. For all he knew, Kimimaro might have alerted Orochimaru and the two might be waiting for him to make a move.

Then again, even if Sakura agrees to leave with him, will Konoha accept her? While he thinks he will be able to convince the Hokage to at least listen to his side of the story, the Elders were a whole different story. The moment they find out that Sakura held more than one Cursed Mark within her and that she was a survivor of Orochimaru's experiments, they will no doubt want dissect her to see if they could find anything.

While he is an Uchiha and has the backing of an entire clan, there will be nothing stopping them from cutting her open for it wouldn't be a problem if she dies. She was Orochimaru's daughter, after all.

He runs a hand through his hair and is about to prepare to go to sleep when there is a knock on the door. He senses Kabuto's chakra and he sighs before he moves to open the door.

The bespectacled man smiles at him and gestures from him to come out. Sasuke narrows his eyes and stays rooted to his spot. "What?"

Kabuto sighs but drops his hand. "Orochimaru-sama wants you." He says.

Sasuke does not comment on just how wrong that sounds and instead, narrows his eyes and fixes the man with an annoyed glare. "It's late." He says.

"And you're still awake." Kabuto crosses his arms. "He's in lab room 407."

"If he wants me to fight one of his mindless zombies, tell him he can wait-"

"Sakura-chan is there to."

Sasuke narrows his eyes. "So?" He asks. He does not know what to think when he just about manages to keep his tone flat and wonders if Kabuto noticed.

However, the man does not say anything and does not change is expression. Instead, he frowns. "Orochimaru-sama told me you would come if I said that." He shrugs. "Well, it's fine. I guess I'll-"

Sasuke close the door in Kabuto's face and misses the man's knowing smirk.

* * *

The moment Sasuke is sure Kabuto has left, he slips out of the door. He had no idea what the suffocating feeling within him was but if going to see Orochimaru would lighten it, he would do so.

He was absolutely not going to see Sakura, and he was in no way going to admit that Kabuto's baiting had worked.

Because he was an Uchiha, and they were the ones that did the baiting, not the other way around.

Repeating the words over and over in his head, he hurries down the corridor. He can feel Orochimaru's chakra leaking out even before he has reached the fourth floor. He masks his chakra to the point it would hard to detect, but not too suspicious if found out. The door to room 404 is left slightly open. The light from within leaves eerie shadows in the corridor. As he sneaks closer, he can hear Orochimaru saying something under his breath.

A scream forcefully pulls him out of his musing. For a second, his heart stops and when he realizes, he is skidding to a halt right outside the room.

"You are truly amazing, Sakura-chan." Orochimaru says, then looks over his shoulder. His snake like yellow eyes meet his onyx ones and Sasuke feels his blood run cold. "Don't you think so, Sasuke-kun?"

He just about manages to catch Orochimaru's mocking voice. His eyes slide over him and land on the bloodied form of Sakura, chained down to the table like all those other experiments he had seen while coming here. There is a crimson soaked kunai in the Sannin's hand and multiple stab wounds dripping blood on pinkette's chest.

Her Cursed Seals had spread over her body, the two different patterns clashing and molding before his very eyes. The flame marks of his Cursed Mark of Heaven are on the right and Kimimaro's Cursed Mark of Earth on the left. The area between them is a shifting blob of black, like the two marks are trying to absorb each other.

"What...are you doing?"

Orochimaru chuckles and runs his hand through Sakura's hair. "Hear that, Sakura-chan?" The girl tenses and her eyes widen but Sasuke can see that she is not looking at anything and she is not hearing anything. "I guess Sasuke-kun doesn't agree."

Sakura's eyes begin to flutter shut. Orochimaru curses and reaches over for a syringe but she is out before he even turns back. In an instant, the marks of the Cursed Seals begin to pull away from each other.

Orochimaru sighs and Sasuke can tell that he is trying to hold back his anger.

"So close, Sakura-chan." He lifts his kunai again and before Sasuke can react, stabs the unconscious girl again. He waves his hand in Sasuke's direction. "She'll be fine by morning." He ignores Sasuke's disbelieving silence and storms out without a single comment.

The moment he is gone, Sasuke darts over Sakura. He tries to remember what he had learnt in the Academy about first aid and catches himself before he pulls out the blade. Without anything to stop the bleeding, there was a chance she would die of blood loss.

He then remembers Orochimaru's regeneration abilities and the fact that the snake had been so sure that she wouldn't die. He gently runs his fingers over the rips in Sakura's clothes and feels one of the wounds probably acquired before his arrival beginning to close.

With an annoyed snarl, he rips the chains holding down her limbs and strips out of his top. He wraps the white shirt around the girl and gathers her up into his arms. She does not make a sound, and that worries him. Even when unconscious, people gave signs of being in pain. Sakura's expression had become blank, as though she was sleeping. Her fists were loose and she didn't struggle against him or anything.

He streaks out of the room and heads straight towards his. It was Orochimaru's absolute belief in Sakura's seeming indestructibility that put her in so much danger. He would keep going until he reaches the results he wanted and Sakura's death would be a hindrance at most to his plans.

She seems to be his favorite, after all.

Sasuke has already received orders from Konoha. It has been left up to him to pick the place and moment and it seems he cannot waste anymore time. First and foremost, he has to get Sakura out of here.

Their relationship has changed rapidly over time. First, all Sakura had been was another step leading up to his final mission. After that, he had gone to her to escape the monstrosities of Orochimaru's base. Here, he had seen things and done things so horrifying he couldn't allow himself to look back. He had held onto the belief that if someone like Sakura could stay as untainted as she seemed, she could shield him from it too.

But something black could not be tainted any darker and it had taken him a little too long to realize this.

It hurt to think that Sakura could have been so much more brighter.

* * *

 **So, here's chapter eight. Sasuke will begin his, uh, slipping away? soon.**

 _ **Darque: I have no idea if Sasuke and Sakura's relationship is written right. Does it seem forced or too quick?**_

 **Raven: How am I supposed to know? You're the girl here.**

 _ **Darque: You're being chauvinistic.**_

 **Raven: Oh...**

 _ **Darque: Anyways, what we're trying to do here is not build a slow relationship built on understanding and stuff like that. Sasuke and Sakura are broken in ways not visible in first glance and that's what made them click.**_

 **Raven: Well, they certainly seem broken.**

 _ **Darque: I think that, at the back of his mind, Sasuke sees Sakura as a charity case. He knows he used her as an anchor to the light of sorts and he wants to repay her without even realizing it.**_

 **Raven: You sound so serious for once.**

 ** _Darque: I am trying to write something dark and twisted in a not so bad way and you are ruining the moment._**

 **Raven: You like these broken-people-forced-together-to-create-something-uniquely-them thing a lot, don't you. Our stories tend to be like that.**

 ** _Darque: I do._**

 **Raven: Is this sadistic hunger for mental conflict and emotional suffering a girl thing, or is it a Darque thing?**

 **Read and Review~**


	10. Chapter 10

_**Chapter TEN**_

Once sure Sasuke was baited, Kabuto slips back into the shadows and watches with a twisted feeling of satisfaction when the Uchiha rushes right past without noticing him, obviously too worried to catch his well concealed chakra signature. He mockingly waves at the rapidly moving back before he turns and heads back to his room. Once done with his experiments, Orochimaru would bring Sakura to his place, where he would get to observe the rate in which Sakura's wounds healed.

The girl had appeared out of nowhere. One day, she hadn't existed and in the next, she was just there.

One day, Orochimaru had led her into his lab, with absolutely no explanation prior and certainly no information given upon her arrival. Still, Kabuto clearly remembers the day he first met Sakura. After all, it had also been the day he got to witness one of the most fascinating things in his life.

 _He had been called to Orochimaru's office one day. 'A job', Orochimaru had said._

 _The moment he had stepped through the door, the only thing that saved him from being decapitated had been his instincts, which had been honed to danger and threats after years of being undercover in what was said to be the strongest Hidden Village. He neatly ducked and shoved forward, catching his attacker by the stomach and sending them flying. He caught sight of a young girl, looking barely five, with pink hair and insane green eyes before she knocks into the wall and crumbles to the ground._

 _He knows all of his personal experiments and had made sure to remember all of Orochimaru's too, and he knew that this girl hadn't been on any of the files. He briefly wondered if she was an escaped prisoner who had yet to be picked but a pressuring presence behind him had stopped him from moving._

 _Kabuto turned around and bowed. "Orochimaru-sama."_

 _The Snake Sannin smirked at him and walked into the room. "Hello, Kabuto-kun." He glanced at the bespectacled man before his yellow eyes slid over him and landed on the girl struggling to her feet. "Oh, she's awake." He tapped his chin. "I thought she'd be out for another few hours."_

 _Kabuto opened his mouth but was interrupted before he could say anything by the sound of glass hitting the ground. The girl lunged over the knocked over table and flew at Orochimaru. Kabuto immediately reached for a weapon but Orochimaru did not move. Instead, the Snake Sannin simply reached up when she approached and grabbed the girl's wrist. He tugged her towards him and wrapped his fingers around her head._

" _Now now." He hissed. "Be a good girl." He tightened his grip and the girl let out a growl, trying to slip away, her small fingers yanking harshly at Orochimaru's._

" _Orochimaru-sama, who is this?" Kabuto asked._

 _Orochimaru chuckled and tossed the girl onto the ground. "Her name is Sakura and she is your newest project." He said. "Your job is to tame her."_

 _Kabuto blinked. "Tame her?" He asked._

 _Orochimaru nodded and eyed the girl, who wasn't getting up._

 _Kabuto shook off his surprise and got to his feet. "Is there anything I should know about her?" He asked, because he had learnt not to question the Sannin long ago. "Any data already taken?"_

" _All you need to know," Orochimaru turned to him, a smile on his face. "Is that she is my daughter." The man then turned and left, like he hadn't just claimed to have a daughter. Kabuto turned back to the girl. She looked to be around five, which led to his biggest question._

 _Where had she come from?_

 _He knew every nook and cranny of all of Orochimaru's bases. There was no way the Snake Sannin had managed to raised a girl with such bright and unique colorings without him knowing._

 _A quiet groan pulls him from his thoughts and as his eyes land on the girl, Sakura, his mind automatically begins to move his body._

 _This girl was his newest project, he couldn't let her die. He glanced around the messed up lab and his eyes zeroed in on a container. He pulls out a syringe from the glass holder and walks over to the girl. She weakly lifts her head and blinks at him for a second before she looks away. He spreaded his senses and once sure there wasn't any bloodlust, approached her carefully._

 _Sakura's green eyes land on him again but she does not move. She simply blinks tiredly at him before she closes her eyes. The only way Kabuto knows she is still awake is the way her shoulders tense with each step he took. He finally reaches her side and crouches beside her. "That's a good girl."_

 _With actions of someone who had done this countless number of times, he injects Sakura with the knockout drug. The girl is out before she even notices and Kabuto gathers her up in his arms. Even as he kicks the door open, due to having no hands free, he realizes that she is very thin._

 _Too thin to be healthy, in fact._

 _He sighed. He would have to see if he could find any data on her. For starters, he would need her age to figure out what was healthy. He places her on the spare bed in his lab and hesitates before putting a chakra suppressing shackle on her ankle. He then exits his room again._

 _There had to be some sort of record left._

* * *

"He came for her."

Kabuto blinks and forces back the urge to jump. Instead, he whips around at the voice to face Orochimaru.

"He did." Out of habit, he fingers his glasses.

Orochimaru chuckles. "And he thinks he's being subtle."

"Are you going to leave her with him?" Kabuto asks.

Orochimaru shrugs. "I doubt Sasuke-kun will bring her here." He says. "And Sakura-chan will be as good as new by tomorrow." He smirks. "Now, Kabuto, I want those reports on No.5738."

Kabuto feels his mood brighten at the mention of the experiment. "Right." He turns to his desk and swipes off the file with all his notes and hands it over to Orochimaru.

For a long time, Sakura had been his personal project. Then Kimimaro had come and the girl's interest had shifted from him to the Kaguya and Sakura had begun moving away. Then the Uchiha had arrived and having lost her interest in Kabuto's medical approach to things, Sakura began spending her time running around with people who she could fight without worrying that she would accidentally kill them.

Some time ago, Kabuto had been disappointed, especially when Orochimaru showed no signs of telling Sakura to return to him, but now, he didn't mind as much.

After all, there were plenty of interesting things going on.

* * *

 **So, here's chapter ten, this time from Kabuto's point of view~**

 _ **Darque: So, first thing first. We have absolutely no idea where this story is headed (ish), so if anyone is interested in giving us suggestions, they'll be more than welcome~**_

 **Raven** **:** **Second, w** **e just finished watching the newest episode of D. Gray-Man last night (We stayed up until 1 in the morning, nothing too late, but still...I have school. Darque doesn't, lucky girl.) and our heads are still a jumbled mess.**

 _ **Darque: What does that have to do with anything?**_

 **Raven: What does what?**

 _ **Darque: The D. Gray-man thing. I love that anime, by the way.**_

 **Raven: You were the one screaming into my ear about "HOW FRIGGIN LONG YOU'VE BEEN WAITING FOR THIS THING TO COME OUT AND OH MY GOSH IT'S HEREEEEE!". You don't get to complain about it.**

 _ **Darque: You've been waiting too.**_

 **Raven: But I haven't been announcing my happiness to the world.**

 _ **Darque: My way of expressing happiness is way better than yours, which is grin stupidly at everyone and everything, in case you didn't know.**_

 **Raven:...Really?**

 _ **Darque: Really what?**_

 **Raven: Do I grin stupidly at everything?**

 _ **Darque: You do...didn't you know?**_

 **Raven: No...I didn't.**

 _ **Darque: Well, you learn something new everyday :)**_

 **Raven: Okay...**

 **Read and Review~**


	11. Chapter 11

_**Chapter ELEVEN**_

Sasuke all but kicks his door to the side. The walls shake under the strength behind the kick but he pays it no mind, instead marching right in and closing the door with just as much force.

He takes one glance around the room then hurries over to his bed, which he had spread before Kabuto had come knocking, and gently places Sakura onto the mattress. Half of the wounds on Sakura's chest are closed and, not wanting to think about the reason behind it, he simply wipes the blood off. He tightens his white kimono around her waist then grabs a spare obi so that it does not become undone. He then straightens the blanket and pulls it up to her chest. He takes a deep breath to clear his mind then pulls away a little. He prepares a cup of water then plants himself back beside her.

It could be a while before she wakes up.

* * *

Sasuke's sharp eyes don't miss Sakura's fingers twitch.

It is just before sunrise and Sasuke is sure if he opened the windows, he would be able to see the sun peeking out in the distance. He doesn't, though, and instead, he forces his fists to unclench and he sits up, eyes flickering up to her face.

He sees Sakura's pink lashes twitch before they flutter open and Sasuke is once again hit with just how green her eyes are.

"Sasuke?"

The Uchiha blinks and he is pulled out of his thoughts. "Sakura." He pauses. "How are you feeling?"

The pinkette blinks in confusion and Sasuke see her eyes flickering around the room, as though just realizing that this was not her room. "Okay? Why?"

Sasuke tenses and his thoughts fly back to Kimimaro's weird reaction to a while ago, when he had asked Sakura about seeing Orochimaru and she hadn't been able to answer.

"Where were you yesterday?" He asks.

"With Kabuto." She says. "I was helping with his experiments."

"What about Orochimaru?" He asks.

"Otou-sama?" Sakura tries to sit up and Sasuke moves smoothly to keep her down. "Wha-"

"You fainted." He says, before he can stop himself.

"I did?" Sakura asks. "When? Where am I?"

"You did. Last night. My room." Sasuke hands her the cup and she takes it.

"But I-" Sakura trails off. "I did?" She repeats.

"Weren't you with Orochimaru yesterday?" Sasuke asks.

Sakura frowns. "Otou-sama is busy a lot." She says. "There are set times I can see him, unless it's an emergency. I was supposed to, yesterday. Meet him, I mean, but I think I fell asleep." She sighs. "I do that often. Kabuto said."

Sasuke hums and keeps his expression smooth. However, his mind is a jumbled mess. "So you didn't see Orochimaru yesterday."

Sakura nods. "Nope." She shrugs. "And I wasn't even tired." She twists away and sits up with a triumphant "Ah ha!".

Sasuke restraints himself from rolling his eyes. "You're not dizzy?" He asks.

Sakura shakes her head. "I'm fine, really." She glances towards the closed windows. "But I should go back to my room." She grins. "Who knows when our mission together will come?" She does a back roll and gets to her feet.

"You got one?" Sasuke asks. He stand up as well.

"Yup." Sakura grins. "I asked..." She frowns. "I think I asked." She shrugs. "I forgot when."

Sasuke lets out a "Hn." and slips past to open the door for her. Sakura gratefully smiles and slips out, then turns and waits for him to close his door.

"I'll walk you." Sasuke offers, half because it was the rule Orochimaru had set. Also, "I have someone I have to see."

* * *

Once sure Sakura is safely back in her room, Sasuke makes a sharp turn and in less than a minute, is standing in front of a door. Kimimaro opens the door the moment Sasuke's fist hits the door.

"Uchiha." He says.

"Kaguya." Sasuke replies, because that's how all their conversations start.

"Why are you here?" Kimimaro asks.

"There's something I want you to tell me." Sasuke replies. "About Sakura."

Kimimaro eyes him for a second then nods stiffly. "Why don't we spar?"

* * *

Naruto often claims that men talked with their fists. Sasuke has always found that stupid. All he ever gets from Naruto was 'I'll beat you, Sasuke-teme' in between 'Ramen!'.

But now, as he and Kimimaro delivered harsh blows, some of which would have killed anyone else, he understood how serious the Kaguya had been. They exchange quiet words drowned out by grunts and the sound of flesh hitting flesh to all but them, and Sasuke came to know something he hadn't even suspected.

Kimimaro's loyalty isn't as strong as he had though, and it is not aimed at the person everyone, even the Kaguya himself, thinks.

"If I was to leave..." Sasuke trails off, leaving the statement open. He pulls out a kunai from his sleeve and blocks the blow from the Kaguya's bone sword.

"Bring Sakura with you." Kimimaro says. He aims a halfhearted kick towards the Uchiha's head.

"What makes you think her presence will benefit me?" Sasuke ducks the first kick and blocks the second. "I don't know if she will agree. Besides, how do you think Konoha will react?"

"Sakura will follow if you interest her enough." Kimimaro says. "Your name should be more than enough to protect her." He narrows his eyes. "You like her." He adds, almost accusing.

"Like you don't." Sasuke sneers. "Why don't you take her?"

"You have a place to return to." Kimimaro catches Sasuke's blade with the hilt of his bone sword. "I am from a clan that turned against it housing village. I am in no place to take care of-"

Sasuke cannot help but ask, "Someone like her?"

The next blow that comes contains more bloodlust than the rest. The weight behind it is much heavier and Sasuke has to brace himself so that he does not go skidding. Kimimaro's eyes flash but he does not say anything.

Sasuke shoves back just as hard for the sake of it and leans in so that his quiet voice would reach the other's ear. "So?" He murmurs. "Say I bring her. What happens after that?"

"That depends on what your plans are." Kimimaro replies smoothly.

"You expect me to tell you?"

Kimimaro scoffs. "I sometimes wonder just how you've managed to keep your intentions hidden until now." He says. "Have you always been like this?"

Sasuke smirks. "Perhaps."

"You seemed against it last time." Kimimaro says. "What made you change your mind."

Sasuke hesitates and locks their weapons again. "Does Sakura have memory issues?" He asks.

Kimimaro stiffens and Sasuke catches it.

"No." Kimimaro says. "Not really." Sasuke opens his mouth and Kimimaro raises an eyebrow. "I'm not done."

"Hn." Sasuke narrows his eyes.

"The jumps in her memory are simply brought along as the side effects of extreme trauma." Kimimaro says. "That is all there is to it."

For a second, Sasuke in unable to believe what he hears. "That is-" He grits his teeth and lashes out. "You-"

Kimimaro calmly catches his swipe. "See?"

"What? That Orochimaru is a crazy man who doesn't seem to understand what he's doing to Sakura? Or that Sakura is simply is a girl too good at everything she does that she doesn't even realize she is breaking down?"

"Is she?" Kimimaro asks. "Breaking down?"

"She didn't know what a fucking 'piggy back' was until a few weeks ago." Sasuke snaps, just about managing to keep his voice down. "She writes everything she sees outside because she doesn't want to forget it. She knows something is happening but she doesn't know it is wrong."

"See?" Kimimaro repeats. "You care for her."

"You do too." Sasuke says sharply.

Kimimaro ignores him but speaks before Sasuke can snap. "Orochimaru-sama is planning to send you along with me and Sakura on our next mission." He says. He draws back, a clear indication that he is done with their spar. "Though this time, I am more of an observer. You are to watch her then." His eyes glow and Sasuke stops himself from making a comment on the superior tone. "Then you can decide what you think is the best for her." He turns and glances over his shoulder towards the Uchiha. "But you cannot forget that Sakura has been born and raised in this environment. Do you think she can survive anywhere else?"

"You seem to have given this a lot of thought." Sasuke comments.

"Everything around me was messed up long before I even came here." Kimimaro says. "You who was born into a esteemed shinobi clan should know the history of the Kaguya. To me, Orochimaru's side was nothing too different. If you are strong, you are pushed to your limits until you break. If you are weak, you are merely stepping stones for those who have potential." He turns around and meets Sasuke's gaze. "I met Sakura when she was still nine and she isn't much different from back then. I have never seen her complain, nor have I ever seen her act truly out of her will, and for the longest time, that was what I believed to be the norm." He pauses. "However, you are different. You know what her childhood should have been like and you know what her future should be like. You have power and a name strong enough to giver her that." His eyes became hooded and unreadable. "I do not."

* * *

 **So, here's chapter eleven...**

 _ **Darque: I'm a little worried that the characters are a little OOC...Are they?**_

 **Raven: I thought so too, but I also think it's understandable in this situation. THe way the characters reacted seem to match the emotional conflict they are probably going through.**

 _ **Darque: Hmmm, by the way, every five chapters, we do a pov of a character not Sasuke. Dear Readers, who would you like to see next?**_

 **Raven: In the next chapters, we'll be introducing a few more characters (Not OCs, unless they're some random, unimportant person they pass on the street, or something), so you might want to pick from one of them too.**

 _ **Darque: Just saying.**_

 **Raven: Yeah, me too.**

 **Read and Review~**


	12. Chapter 12

_**Chapter TWELVE**_

It is three days later when Sasuke receives the scroll containing a brief overview of the mission he has been allocated to, alongside Sakura with Kimimaro acting as proctor. Simply put, they were to hunt down a group of people selling information on different organizations, kill them, destroy all information on Oto and bring back anything that might be useful. It sounded simple enough and Kimimaro held the details of the mission.

Sasuke was in a particularly bad mood that morning. Orochimaru had called him into his throne room first thing in the morning where he had listed out a bunch of rules Sasuke could care less about regarding Sakura. Then Kabuto had decided to pay him a visit and had wished him luck in the most taunting way possible and the only thing that stopped Sasuke from tearing the man apart was the fact that time was near and he couldn't risk messing up. After chasing the medic out, he had sharpened his already sharp kunai more than necessary before he stormed out half an hour late, kind of understanding Kakashi and his tardiness. It felt nice to be late out of spite.

Had he been someone else, he probably will have pulled a Kakashi excuse too, but that was a little too much.

He _is_ an Uchiha, after all.

Kimimaro and Sakura are already waiting when he arrives at the gates. Sakura is chattering happily and while it isn't obvious, Kimimaro is clearly listening.

The pinkette is the first to react upon seeing him. She doesn't seem to mind at all that he has kept them waiting for half an hour. She darts over and gives him a brief hug before she smiles and waves in his face. "Hi Sasuke." She says.

Sasuke simply nods and is about to say something when he catches sight of something from the corner of his eye.

Kimimaro shoots him a dismissive glare and while never admitting it out loud, Sasuke is sure he is a little more rough than necessary when he pats Sakura's head. Sakura doesn't complain, though, so he decides that he gets away with it.

Once satisfied, Sakura turns to Kimimaro. "Can we go now?" She asks.

Sasuke turns to Kimimaro as well. "Orochimaru said you have the details." He says.

Kimimaro nods. "Let's head out first." He says. "We'll talk at the inn tonight."

A part of Sasuke wants to complain but the reasonable shinobi part understands that details and important information and plans were best made when they were rested and relaxed. So he simply nods and they head out.

A few seconds into the journey and Sasuke notices something.

It is something so small and trivial that anyone else would have easily dismissed it.

Not Sasuke, though, because Sasuke is nothing if not observant and it is in his blood to never dismiss something that his instincts point out.

He has seen Sakura during one of her training sessions with some Oto shinobi and had even fought her himself and he knows that skill wise, she is more than able to hold her ground in a fight. However, in missions, he has no idea what role she plays. From their interactions, he thinks that apart from the fighting, she seems to have next to no knowledge about the political side of being a shinobi. She blurts out mission content and has no qualms with sharing fighting tips and it is obvious she isn't suited for a mission that includes interactions.

Still, her steps are confident and just looking at the way she easily keeps up with him and Kimimaro it is obvious she has traveled a countless number of times. He recalls Sakura saying that she doesn't leave Otogakure apart from when she is on a mission and as far as he knew, she was more in than out. Still, no amount of indoor training could compare to the experience or the confidence gained on field.

* * *

They enter a small civilian village to spend the night.

Kimimaro goes to get them a room at an inn while Sakura and Sasuke wander off to find them food.

As he watches Sakura skip around with a carefree air about her, Sasuke feels suspicion eat away at the back of his head. It is usual to spend a night at a close by civilian village to rest and plan before moving into the actual village the next day. However, there are a countable number of villages around Tanino village and all were as significant as the one before. The villages in this area ran on trade and as far as Sasuke knew, had no affiliation with any Shinobi village, so unless the group they were looking from were a bunch of farmers during the day, it was highly unlikely their destination was any of those.

And that left the only location in the area that was travelling distance from their current location.

Yoshiwara Village was a red light district known by those who knew. Men and women, boys and girls alike were sent there to earn money or pay back debts and as far as he was concerned, it was a horrible place. Those who had been long abandoned and forgotten by the rest of the world lost themselves from reality and Sasuke had to admit, it was the perfect place to look for a group of people crazy enough to sell information on Otogakure.

"Oh, look, Sasuke!" Sakura tugs on his sleeve and points at a small candy stall. "I want the pink one. Come on, Sasuke, please~" She tugs on his sleeve again.

Sasuke sighs but allows himself to be tugged over to the shop. The old lady running the stall looks up and greets them warmly "Hello."

Sakura smiles back and holds up a packet of pink candy. "May I have this?"

The lady smiles and turns to Sasuke. "Anything else, young man?"

"Hn." Sasuke grabs a few more of the ones Sakura had wanted and places them into pinkette's hands.

The lady chuckles and quickly adds up the price.

Sasuke notices that she is giving them a discount and offers her the closest thing to a smile he can manage. The two of them then enter a small stall nearby and and bought food for the night. By the time they returned to the inn, Kimimaro had spread the futon and was waiting for them. It looked like he wanted to complain about the time but when he saw Sakura happily chewing on the sweets, he simply sent him a sharp nod and smiled in Sakura's direction.

Once settled, Kimimaro pulls out their mission scroll and spread in on the tatami. Sakura and Sasuke gather around him.

"The people we are looking for are a no named informant organization." Kimimaro says. "According to what we have on their history, they all have some sort of tragic past. The man who we suspect to be the leader had his whole family massacred by a hired mercenary."

"So in exchange, he sells information about them." Sasuke scoffs.

"So we kill him?" Sakura asks.

"We need to find him first," Kimimaro points at the photograph and the information beside it. "And make him spill. We want to who he's sold information to."

"What about the others?" Sasuke asks.

"This group isn't a big one. We have the names and faces of all the members and I doubt they'll move separately."

"And why are we here?" Sasuke asks.

Kimimaro looks up at him, eyes equally dark. "Our prey is known to often visit the red light district." He shoots a look at Sakura, who has lost interest the moment the talk became strategic. "And Orochimaru-sama wants Sakura to act as bait."

* * *

 _ **Darque: So, in Aura Kingdom, this game I'm playing, there's this monster-npc thing with this name that made me want to finish this chapter.**_

 **Raven: Oh? And what was it called?**

 _ **Darque: Raging Sasquack.**_

 **Read and Review~**


	13. Chapter 13

_**Chapter THIRTEEN**_

Sasuke does not know what exactly he is feeling as he storms out of the inn room to clear his head before he does something he regrets.

He hears Sakura calling his name before the door closes behind him and he hears the scuffle of clothes and movement as Kimimaro stops the girl from coming after him. The Uchiha does not know if he is grateful or if he wants to deck the Kaguya in the face and instead, quickens his pace, because he does not want to deal with this at the moment.

The air outside feels equally suffocating and Sasuke scoffs at all the people that have told him to 'go out and clear his head'. He scowls up at where he knows their room is from outside. The windows are closed but he can see the moving shadows of either Sakura or Kimimaro and he feels his mood worsen. His feet automatically begin to lead him towards the village walls and he feels his skin itch for a frustration-venting fight. He barely pauses in his steps when a gate guard calls out to him and casts a Genjutsu on him before walking right past. He spends the next few hours beating up the trees in the forest a little travel away. After decimating a majority of the land, he feels relatively better. He glances up and notes that the moon is well up in the sky and his mood instantly dampens at the thought that he would have to return soon.

He flicks the dirt off his sword and wipes it with a piece of cloth. He takes his time polishing his blade and another while putting it carefully away in its sheath. With a sigh, he begins his journey back to their village.

Still, it's too soon when he finds himself back at their inn. It is late, however, and he thinks that while Kimimaro is still awake, Sakura is probably already asleep. Wanting to keep it that way, he carefully opens the door.

He instantly hears the sound of the shower running, an indication that Kimimaro is, indeed, awake. The Kaguya's stuff is placed neatly on the futon on Sakura's right so he takes the one on her left. He takes out a change of clothes and settled himself beside a sleeping Sakura just as the running water comes to a stop.

Kimimaro steps out awhile after that, hair still wet. He has a towel hung around his neck and he has changed out of his shinobi attire, now wearing a simple, loose white yukata for the night.

Sasuke is hit by how _normal_ the Kaguya looks.

In Orochimaru's base, Kimimaro has always been an image of a strictly loyal figure with the prowess and skills to back him up. However, as he watches the white haired teen plop down on his futon and run his towel through his hair, he almost looks like any teenage boy fresh from a shower.

It doesn't help his jumbled mind that Kimimaro is not, in fact, loyal to Orochimaru, but to a pink haired girl who was the Snake's daughter.

The Kaguya looks up, as though finally tired of being stared at. Sasuke meets his challenging stare and Kimimaro nods once in the direction of the bathroom. Sasuke blinks once before he grabs his own change of clothes.

Perhaps a shower would help him relax a little.

* * *

"I believe he is testing you."

Those are the words Kimimaro greets him with when he steps out of the shower, hair dripping.

The Uchiha slowly looks up and his gaze lands on Kimimaro, who is still awake and sitting by the head of Sakura's futon. He watches the Kaguya run a hand gently through her pink locks and scowls.

Kimimaro instantly notices but does not make a snarky comment. Instead, he lets his own hand drop to the ground and simply settles to glanced between the girl and the fuming Uchiha.

It takes Sasuke a second to realize that the Kaguya had said something.

"Hn."

Kimimaro shrugs dismissively. "He wants to see how you would react in a situation like this." He pauses. "You've gotten too close to Sakura too quickly and you've made it way too obvious."

Sasuke's scowl deepens, because he knows that this is the case and he knows that he doesn't like it and he knows that he doesn't care that he doesn't like it. "And you think Orochimaru has a problem with this?"

Kimimaro eyes him, as though wondering just how much of what Sasuke has just said was a statement and how much was an actual question. "I guess he does."

A thought hits him and Sasuke opens his mouth but Kimimaro beats him to it.

"In Orochimaru-sama's eyes, Sakura is the ultimate follower. He knows how the mind of a normal person works well enough to know that isolation leads to attachment to the one person who hung around." He narrows his eyes. "However, he is too sure that Sakura is just like any other person and that will be what you will use to lead him to his downfall."

Sasuke decides that he does not like the way Kimimaro has assumed that he is going to carry out his betrayal. He knows the Kaguya isn't wrong, but he still doesn't like it.

He seems to dislike a lot of things today.

He pushes these thoughts away and decides to ask about the thing that caught his mind. "What do you mean 'any other person'?" He asked.

Kimimaro reaches out and flicks a lock of pink hair away from Sakura's face. "It is exactly as I have said." He said. "Did you think Sakura was normal?" Kimimaro's eyes widen a little at his own words and he catches himself quickly. He is speaking before Sasuke has a chance to question him. "Sakura has a chance to lead a normal life." He says firmly. "She has been so isolated that she will easily take to any situation." He looks directly into Sasuke's eyes. "The only thing she lacks is the chance to break away and you are the only person who can give it to her."

* * *

 **So, here's chapter thirteen~**

 _ **Darque: There will be lots of Sasuke x Sasuke in the next few chapters...probably.**_

 **Raven: If you guys want fluff, send us ideas and we'll see where we can implement them :)**

 _ **Darque: Fluff is cute.**_

 **Raven: And fluffy**

 _ **Darque: I know right.**_

 **Raven: Yeah.**

 **Read and Review~**


	14. Chapter 14

_**Chapter FOURTEEN**_

Just as Sasuke has suspected and dreaded, the three of them head out early in the morning for the Yoshiwara district. They travel a certain distance before Kimimaro orders them to slow into an average pace.

Any shinobi that could travel the speed they had been travelling for such a distance would not visit a place they were heading for, or so the people there thought.

Sasuke can hear the noise of the village long before they had arrived by the walls. The moment they pass through the gates, Sasuke feels eyes on him and he instinctively tenses.

It isn't they type where people look because they recognize him as an Uchiha or because he is blessed with the good looking genes or anything. It is simply a group of people so detached from the rest of the world and living in their own reality examining a fellow failure.

Sasuke glances over at Kimimaro, who is firmly standing his ground, then at Sakura, who does not seem to be bothered at all. The Kaguya leads them through the people gathered there, waiting for the arrival of someone desperate enough to pick one of them the moment they step within the walls. Warned off by his sure steps, the crowd moves to create space for them as they pass.

Here, those who knew what they were doing were left to their own accord. They tend to have high standards, after all.

That does not stop them from eyeing them with hungry eyes from the other side of the streets, though, and Sasuke does not even scowl when he and Kimimaro brush shoulders when they move to cover Sakura with their larger frames. Sakura huffs when she suddenly finds herself sandwiched between the two bigger males but giggles and takes this chance to link arms with both of them.

Sasuke briefly remembers how the girls back in Konoha tried to do that to him, but this time, it doesn't feel so bad and he simply lets her.

Kimimaro got them a room in an inn so flashy that their distinctive appearances didn't stand out at all. The lady at the reception clearly comes to the wrong conclusion when the three of them show up, Sakura tugging both of them on eagerly. She checked them into a single room then lightly tugs on Kimimaro's sleeve. "Mind one more?" She asks suggestively.

Kimimaro eyes her blankly until the woman drops her gaze. "I do, in fact." He gracefully swipes the keys off the desk and leads Sakura off, Sasuke being pulled along by default.

Their room is on the top floor of the hotel. Kimimaro deftly unlocks the door then hands them each a copy of the key. Sakura tugs Sasuke after her when she enters and Sasuke hisses when he runs into a wall because he couldn't dodge without crashing into Sakura, who had been taking her time entering. The pinkette turns at the sound and giggles at him like he had run into the wall by choice and he half wants to reach out and whack her like he does Naruto because it wasn't his fault, but he doesn't because their location and the mission content and how frail she looks all weighs down on him at once. Instead, he ruffled her hair, messing it up, then slips past her into the room while she is complaining about it.

"We will commence operation tonight." Kimimaro says.

"Oh yeah, mission!" Sakura pats Sasuke's hand. "Can you wait? I can't."

Sasuke smiles at her but what he feels does not match his expression. "Hn."

"Sakura, your job is simple." Kimimaro continues. "All you have to do is sit still."

Sakura blinks. "Huh?"

Kimimaro gestures towards Sasuke. "He will be giving you the details for the time and location."

Sasuke scowls at the job suddenly thrust onto him but nods when Sakura turn to him in confusion.

"Who takes care of our target does not matter." Kimimaro tells them. "All we need are files and information on his dealings."

"When do we need this done by?" Sasuke does a mental run through of their surrounding environment. He is sure that either the village square or the gates are the best places to look for this guy, but he needs to somehow make sure that it is the target and not some random perverted bastard that Sakura comes in contact with.

"We were given no time limit, though I expect we are to be done as quickly as possible."

Sasuke nods. "I'll be heading out for a while." He says. When Sakura opens her mouth, he cuts her off before she has said anything. "You wait here."

Sakura pouts. "Why?"

'Because I don't want you exposed to this environment longer than you have to be.' He thinks. He doesn't say this, though. "Because I can't have you recognized later if we're to pull this off."

Sakura huffs. "Fine."

Sasuke smiles and ruffles her hair. With a nod at Kimimaro and promises to return early to Sakura, he slips out of their room.

* * *

Once outside and without any accompaniments, people begin to see it fit to throw themselves at him. Sasuke has to brush off seven females and a male before he has even crossed to the other side of the street. With a light genjutsu, he throws off his followers and slips into an alleyway. He checks for any presence in the area before he conceals his own and makes his way up to the rooftops.

Now that he has a better view of everything, he quickly makes his way towards the places where many people are gathered and tries to figure out a way to make Sakura stand out enough to catch the attention of their target, but not too much that it attracts anyone else.

Sasuke knows that Sakura's rare colorings would make attract a lot of attention and it was her features that made her the perfect bait to begin with.

Sick bastards liked crushing innocent little girls with pink hair, after all. His thoughts instantly fly to Orochimaru and Kabuto, and it must have been the face he was making, because no one tried to approach him after that.

* * *

 **So, here's chapter fourteen~**

 _ **Darque: I had to this English oral thing the other day and I was so worried about it but I somehow managed to do okay and now I'm so happy so yeah.**_

 **Raven: Yay~**

 _ **Darque: My sarcasm detector is tingling.**_

 **Raven: I wasn't being sarcastic, though.**

 _ **Darque: Right. You're sarcastic abotu everything so it doesn't count when it's a one time thing.**_

 **Raven: You're the one that's sarcastic about everything,**

 _ **Darque: Yeah right.**_

 **Raven:...**

 _ **Darque:...**_

 **Raven: You know, it's kinda hard to tell when we're typing this message thing to each other.**

 _ **Darque: It is. We'll settle this face to face.**_

 **Raven: I think that'll be best.**

 **Read and Review~**


	15. Chapter 15

_**Chapter FIFTEEN**_

Hatake Kakashi is one of the most renowned shinobi in all of the nations.

At least, he was, until he was forced to become a Jounin teacher to a group of fresh Genin and kind of dropped off the radar.

Apparently, being known as a cold hearted, ruthless, efficient ANBU spread your name faster than if you were a good sensei, even if your students happened to be the Fourth Hokage's son and and the second heir to the Uchiha clan.

He is also one of the handful of people who know that Uchiha Sasuke's 'defection' from the village is an undercover mission.

Then again, 'handful' may be pushing it, because the only other people who know about this are Senju Tsunade, the Slug Sannin who was also the Fifth and current Hokage, Jiraiya, the Toad Sannin who owned the widest information network known, and Uchiha Itachi, who is one of the three survivors of the Uchiha massacre and is considered to be a once in a lifetime prodigy, the previous being Kakashi himself.

When he enters the office, Itachi is already there. Shizune nods in his direction before she bows to the Hokage and leaves. Tsunade activates a few secrecy seals and Kakashi feels the chakra scan over him.

He hold back a shudder, already knowing where all these extra security means are leading up to.

"Hatake." Tsunade says.

"Hokage-sama." Kakashi dips his head. "Itachi."

"Hello, Hatake-san." Itachi returns the greeting, polite as ever.

"Did adorable little Sasuke-kun send a report?" Kakashi stops in front of Tsunade, beside Itachi.

Tsunade nods. "According to what is written, we can see that Orochimaru is quickly getting out of hand." She shoots Itachi a swift look from the corner of her eyes. "And it seems the time limit for his current body is also approaching. He should be tremendously weakened by now."

"And increasingly desperate for my brother's body." Itachi flinches at his own words.

Kakashi is unable to hold back a wince. "That sounds...unpleasant." He raises his hands in defeat when Itachi shoots him a subtle glare.

Tsunade sighs, calling back their attention. "However, the main reason I called you today is not to discuss what he have already known for a while." She stops, as though thinking over her words, before she rolls her eyes at whatever conclusion she has come to. "I called you here to discuss Sakura."

"Sakura?" Kakashi glances at Itachi, who does an Uchiha version of a shrug, which was to convey their confusion as subtly as possible through their eyes. Only years of working with him allowed Kakashi to understand.

Tsunade nods. "Sasuke states that this 'Sakura' is Orochimaru's daughter." She narrows her eyes. "There have been absolutely no records of her existence noted anywhere." She says. "While I do not find this particularly suspicious, Sasuke also says that she is fourteen and yet, not even he knew of her existence until Orochimaru himself revealed her to him."

Kakashi shudders. "I wonder what the daughter of the snake looks like."

Tsunade smirks but does not comment. Instead, she pulls one of the files off her desk and tosses it towards them. It lands on the wood in front of them with a thunk and Kakashi curiously flips it open.

"Those are the missions Sakura was involved in that Sasuke managed to gather."

Kakashi recognizes several of these and he hands them over to Itachi, who skim through.

"But it seems like she has been running around doing a lot of the snake's work." Kakashi taps his chin. "We've received reports on several of the missions Sakura most likely carried out, right?" He says, noting the destruction left behind in all of them. "Are there no reports of sightings?"

Tsunade shakes her head. "No, and I'm sure we'll know, because she has bright pink hair." She holds up a photograph and flips it over so that both males can see.

Kakashi pauses, her image not matching what he had in mind.

"She looks like any ordinary girl." Itachi says softly. "Is this-"

"Sasuke took it from one of the spares used when Orochimaru and his glasses sidekick files experiment reports." Tsunade's eyes flash. "Yes, that means Orochimaru has been experimenting on his own daughter."

"So we have a previously unheard of girl called Sakura who is Orochimaru's daughter, biologically or not, who is actually knee deep in Orochimaru's mess." He stops. "And what exactly is the problem here?" Kakashi asks slowly, because he does not think he will like what he hears next.

Tsunade sighs. "Sasuke wrote that his plans of killing Orochimaru and defecting was uncovered by one of Orochimaru's men."

Both Itachi and Kakashi jump at this, and the Uchiha heir is leaning forward, no doubt about to ask for an immediate retrieval mission.

Tsunade stops him with a raised hand. "I'm not done."

Itachi freezes.

"He states that this 'Kaguya Kimimaro'-" She tosses them another photograph, this time of a boy who looks older than Sasuke but younger than Itachi. "-claims to not have told Orochimaru of this."

Kakashi's eyebrows shoot up. "He actually believes him?" He asks.

Tsunade sighs and rubs at her temple. "Apparently, he and this Kimimaro fella share the same views regarding something."

"And what does that have to do with Sakura?" Itachi asks.

Tsunade turns to look at the Uchiha. "When Sasuke leaves Oto, Kimimaro wants him to take Sakura with him." She says. "Your brother has requested that upon their return, we agree to take her in."

Itachi freezes, clearly shocked.

Kakashi, however, has something nagging his mind. "So Sasuke just believed the Kaguya?" He repeats. "Isn't it most likely to be a trap?" His words pull Itachi out of his frozen state.

Tsunade rolls her eyes. "

"Apparently so."

"What is this common view you speak of?" Itachi asks, though his tone is anything but that.

Tsunade looks at him with what Kakashi thinks is pity, completely deadpan. "Because both the Kaguya boy and your brother are hopelessly in love with this Sakura."

This time, Kakashi chokes on his saliva.

Itachi's eyes are wide and Kakashi thinks the tips of his ears are red, like, why is Itachi the one who is embarrassed?

"Hokage-sama!" Itachi says, though it comes out like a protest.

Tsunade rolls her eyes and tosses him what is Sasuke's report scroll. "Read it and tell me he does not sound like he is infatuated."

"I do not know what 'Love' sounds like." Still, Itachi takes the scroll and begins to read.

Kakashi turns to Tsunade and is not surprised to find that her previous teasing tone is not there. "And what are you going to do?" He asks. "You cannot just ignore this, can you?"

"Sasuke is very adamant about it." Tsunade says. "He claims that Sakura knows next to nothing about Orochimaru's true self and that she is willing to listen to him." She links her hands in front of her and leans on them. "There isn't much we can do from here." She says. "Sasuke still has half a year before he is due to return. That is plenty of time for him to decide that he would rather stay with Sakura than return to Konoha."

"Sasuke would never-" Itachi is quick to jump to his brother's defense, but it is Tsunade's tone that makes him go quiet.

"Can you truly vouch for him?" Tsunade asks slowly. "The massacre changed the boy in many ways. This is not helped by the fact that the true culprits were never found. Also, we were all aware of the impact Sasuke's stay in Oto may have on him. Can you truly claim to know your brother?"

Itachi goes quiet, expression unreadable.

Tsunade sighs. "All I can say for now is that once Sasuke is out of Oto, we can send people instead of scrolls as means of communication."

Itachi straightens at this and Kakashi rolls his shoulders.

"The next report will be delivered after Sasuke carries out the assassination." Tsunade says. She takes the scroll from Itachi and activates the destruction seal on it. The paper crumbles and disappears, not a trace of it left.

"That is all for today." Tsunade says. "You are dismissed."

Kakashi and Itachi bow in unison before they pull away from the desk and out of the office.

Itachi is gone the moment they are out of the Hokage tower, leaving Kakashi to his thoughts. The Jounin sighs before he glances up at the sky. He is late for a team meeting and while he has a legit excuse this time, he is sure no one will believe him.

He chuckles and begins making his way towards the training grounds.

He doesn't know why he even bothers.

* * *

 **A little late (Cause Darque was out) but here's the next chapter~**

 _ **Darque: I am currently busy writing the first chapter of the story we are planning to publish next.**_

 **Raven:...**

 _ **Darque: Of course, this one wont be out until we finish at least one of our currently ongoing stories.**_

 **Raven:...**

 _ **Darque: That was the deal, after all.**_

 **Raven:...**

 _ **Darque: Then again, 'First Time to see the World' is almost done, just a handful of chapters to go-**_

 **Raven:...**

 _ **Darque: And here's the thing.**_

 **Raven:...**

 _ **Darque: We'll be putting up a poll soon regarding the previously mentioned new story, so keep an eye out for that.**_

 **Raven: EIFqasdAqrqwYW HFWPOIpokqwpeqWE FEWjyfjhfbwFWEe.**

 _ **Darque: What is that, a new science formula?**_

 **Raven: I thought you were going to spoil!**

 _ **Darque: I would never.**_

 **Raven: You hand out spoilers in exchange left and right.**

 _ **Darque: I would never.**_

 **Raven: You do not sound convincing. At all.**

 _ **Darque: No, really, I wouldn't. The point of this AN thing was so that I could alert our readers of the coming poll (Which we will update you guys on in one of the next chapters, once it's up.)**_

 **Raven: But I wouldn't know that, would I? I can't read minds.**

 _ **Darque: But you are. Guess what I'm thinking.**_

 **Raven:...'He's such an idiot'.**

 _ **Darque: See? You can make a genius out of you, yet.**_

 **Read and Review~**


	16. Chapter 16

**POLL INFO AT THE BOTTOM~**

 _ **Chapter SIXTEEN**_

Sasuke recognizes the shinobi grounds the moment he sees it.

It is a small clearing in between the mashed buildings and while it isn't anything eye catching or majestic, Sasuke instantly notes that if he had been a shinobi, this would be the location he would hang around.

The buildings are just perfectly placed so that there is enough cover and at the same time, a clear view of anyone who enters. There are plenty of ways to escape, including three alleyways, the roof tops, and tunnel cutting through a building and a couple of manholes with latches so rusty it probably wouldn't take a lot of strength of break.

Yoshiwara was an ideal place to pull of an assassination. While not listed, it was considered neutral grounds and while conflicts between groups were frowned upon, as long as it did not disrupt the air of the village, nothing would be done about it. The bodies would be picked up and disposed of, the blood and any other mess would be cleaned, and by next morning, the room would be open for the next customer.

There were many forms of 'escape' found here, it seemed.

Sasuke perches himself on the edge of the roof for a while before deeming it safe to jump down. He landed quietly and notes down the locations of each escape route. The sun has just begun lowering, so Sasuke suspects that it is around four. He notes that there aren't many people gathered there and it is either because there are no shinobi within the village today, or they have not come out to mingle yet.

He is about to leave when he senses someone approaching and the chakra signature alone is enough to tell him that it is a low ranking shinobi. The way this person is not concealing their signature tells him that this person is either stupid, confident in their skills, or both.

It is probably an idiot overestimating his prowess.

Sasuke turns to the alleyway he hears the footsteps coming from and his blood begins to boil with annoyance and excitement when he comes face to face with their target.

"Ye're early." The man drawled, clearly unaware of the fact Sasuke is planning his death.

The Uchiha narrows his eyes, a plan forming in his head. If they hadn't needed any information, he could kill the man right now, this instance, and his body would vanish, never to be found again. Interrogation was out of the question, because if this guy was even a little smart, he would take his information to the grave. Sasuke could always use the Sharingan on him but he did not know the extent of the information the man knew and he had no idea how far he could press before his mind broke, or if the man had spoken all he knew before he had shattered.

While holding no particular loyalty toward Oto, he knew that information selling was was something that could easily spill over the borders of a village, and he needed to secure his own grounds, especially now.

So instead, he pushes down the hate he feels for himself as he does this, and plasters on the most casual smile he could manage.

* * *

Later that evening, Sasuke has Kimimaro instruct Sakura with where to go, what to do, and how to act, simply because he cannot bring himself to do this to her himself.

However, he tells himself that it is because he can't be anywhere near her when she arrived if he wants to make this whole thing a little more believable.

Kimimaro approached him just before they commence operation. "Sakura will be removing the target." He says softly. "You are to wait nearby. I have told her that she is to flare her chakra if anything goes wrong and when she does, we'll be moving to plan B."

"Why wasn't I told of this earlier?" Sasuke snaps, because he is not is a very good mood.

Kimimaro shrugs. "You coming in contact with our target before our actual plan was not a part of the calculations. Our original plan had a couple of flaws, and I am pleased to inform you that this change of plans have filled it in." He says, face blank. "Now, all that is left is for you to make sure Sakura comes in contact with our target, and our target alone."

"Don't pretend you don't care." Sasuke sneers.

Kimimaro pretends not to hear. "From what I know, our target is a well known figure in this area. It should not be too strange to see him walking off with the featured toy of the day."

Sasuke stops himself from decking the older teen in the face, because Sakura chooses that moment to exit the bathroom and Sasuke knows her well enough to know that she would be horrified if she found the two of them beating the crap out of each other.

In Konoha, people who saw him and Naruto go at eachother's throats had talked about how good of friends they were.

It was ironic, really, that a girl who had no problems addressing people as 'experiments' and enjoyed killing them did not like watching the people she liked fight.

But then again, this was a question on moral, wasn't it? Sakura had grown up being taught that one of the most infamous mass murder and criminal was the most amazing father anyone could have and that failed experiments were useless things that had to be removed. Was it her fault? Or was it the fault of those who led her to it?

Sasuke himself had, under orders and after having heard only one side of the story, killed people too. Who was he, or anyone else, for that matter, to judge?

"How is it?" Sakura asks, completely unaware of the tension or Sasuke's mental conflict. "Do I look okay?" She spins around.

Sasuke turned to her. The girl has exchanged her usual outside outfit for clothing more appropriate for her job. Her clothes are too short, too tight, too revealing...

Sasuke catches himself before he shakes his head and lets out a soft. "Hn." He is sure his ears are red.

Sakura's smile brightens and she expectantly turns to Kimimaro, who smiles. "Cute." He says.

Sakura's smile is now like the sun and she skips over. "Okay. I'm ready!"

And Sasuke hates himself more than he had ever that day as he nods. "Shall we go, then?"

 **We have put up a poll concerning the next story we are planning to publish. Due to the fact that only allows one poll up at a time, the format of this poll is slightly messy, though there are only a few options, so we hope it isn't too complicated.**

 **The following questions are asked with the following possible answers:**

 **-Which tense do you prefer? (A)**

 **Past tense**

 **Present tense**

 **-Which Sakura characters do you like the most? (B)**

 **A carefree, innocent, seemingly naive, misleading Sakura who actually knows more than she lets on (Sakura from 'A Wish Upon those Eyes of Green', 'Ivy')**

 **A slightly insane, bloodthirsty, crazy and yet, can be cold and calculating Sakura that knows she's a few screws loose and makes sure everyone around her knows it too (Sakura from 'The Beauty of Life', 'First Time to see the World')**

 **A serious, slightly detached Sakura who knows so much and yet, so little of the world outside those she is loyal to (Sakura from 'Red Strings of Fate','The Core')**

 **A fearful, oppressed Sakura that is a shell of what could have been like due to past trauma who has a hard time breaking off old engraved habits. (Sakura from 'The Path of Endless Togethers'[First few chapters])**

 **Like the above, the choices will be marked with either 'A)' or 'B)'**

 **Please pick one from each.**

 **Thank you for your cooperation.**

* * *

 _ **Darque: I am currently busy writing the first chapter of the story we are planning to publish next.**_

 **Raven:...**

 _ **Darque: Of course, this one wont be out until we finish at least one of our currently ongoing stories.**_

 **Raven:...**

 _ **Darque: That was the deal, after all.**_

 **Raven:...**

 _ **Darque: Then again, 'First Time to see the World' is almost done, just a handful of chapters to go-**_

 **Raven:...**

 _ **Darque: And here's the thing.**_

 **Raven:...**

 _ **Darque: We'll be putting up a poll soon regarding the previously mentioned new story, so keep an eye out for that.**_

 **Raven:EIFqasdAqrqwYW HFWPOIpokqwpeqWE FEWjyfjhfbwFWEe.**

 _ **Darque: What is that, a new science formula?**_

 **Raven: I thought you were going to spoil!**

 _ **Darque: I would never.**_

 **Raven: You hand out spoilers in exchange left and right.**

 _ **Darque: I would never.**_

 **Raven: You do not sound convincing. At all.**

 _ **Darque: No, really, I wouldn't. The point of this AN thing was so that I could alert our readers of the coming poll (Which we will update you guys on in one of the next chapters, once it's up.)**_

 **Raven: But I wouldn't know that, would I? I can't read minds.**

 _ **Darque: But you are. Guess what I'm thinking.**_

 **Raven:...'He's such an idiot'.**

 _ **Darque: See? You can make a genius out of you, yet.**_

 **Read and Review~**


	17. Chapter 17

_**Chapter SEVENTEEN**_

Sasuke spent a few seconds contemplating before he settles with stalking into the clearing. He is instantly hit with the sight unlike earlier. Perhaps it was because it was darker, but there were much more shinobi, and prostitutes, linger. He saw more than on slashed hitai-ate and confirmed his thoughts.

This really was a dump of rejects.

Sasuke stops himself from pushing away a woman that is instantly plastered to his side and nods when their target looks up and the gazes meet.

The air continues to get thicker and just as Sasuke is about to shove the woman away, there is a slight shift in the atmosphere. Sasuke instantly looks up and freezes.

When Sakura stalks into the clearing at just the right pace, head tilted a little to expose just the right amount of her neck and her eyes glowing just a little eerily, Sasuke is hit with the sudden thought that this wasn't Sakura's first time on a mission like this.

Kimimaro is on the other side of the village.

The Kaguya had claimed it due to another less significant rumor he was to check out but Sasuke knew that is was simply to keep himself from killing their target.

And since he wasn't here, Sasuke couldn't ask him the question now burning his mind.

Perhaps it is her clearly undyed unique colors, or maybe it is the curiously innocent shifting of her eyes, but she is instantly in the center of attention.

Still, one by one, the people there turn away from her as the target glares at them in challenge. It is an unspoken rule that the strongest always gets first dibs.  
Sasuke inwardly scoffs.

If only they knew.

Their target approaches Sakura who perfectly plays the role of an innocent yet curious girl. Within minutes, the target has his arms around her shoulders and Sasuke can hear his breath quickening. He holds down the urge to kill him and just watches as finally, he begins to lead Sakura away.

However, before he can move, a small number of nuke-nin approaches him.

"Wanna go after them?" He asks. "See if we can pick up the leftovers?"

Sasuke's first thought is to kill them but then the rational part of his brain catches up to him.

If he agrees to this, no one will find it suspicious that he is following a girl that is already supposedly taken

"Hn."

He waits for them to walk past him before he tags along at the back.

These men really should not claim to be shinobi. You never let someone you know behind you.

The moment they enter an alleyway Sasuke pulls out a kunai and makes quick work of the men. They don't even see it coming and in a second, they are all as dead as dirt.

He flicks the blade so no marks splatter onto his shirt then wipes it on the shirt of one of the men. He then traces for Sakura's chakra and soon finds himself front of an inn.

Sasuke charms the receptionist into telling him where their target is staying then perches himself on the roof right above his room.

He is lucky he is on the top floor and he is lucky the curtains are drawn back. The glass is not a problem. He can see Sakura and the man sitting on the bed, still talking.

And just as he is beginning to play around with the idea of swooping in and just killing the man, Sakura, still smiling, spins around and stabs an arm through the man's chest.

Sasuke blinks to make sure he is seeing things right and watches blankly as blood begins to make a small puddle on the floor.

"What the hell is she doing?" He hisses sharply under his breath and is about to crash in to stop her before she kills the man when he sees a green glow around Sakura's arm.

Sasuke realizes with a jolt that this was probably the most horrifying type of interrogation one could go through. He wonders what it felt like to have an arm through the chest and yet, being unable to die.

For a moment, Sasuke is relieved.

When he had heard the content of this mission, he had thought that 'interrogation', would go more the lines of Sakura

He activates his Sharingan and engraves the words shared between Sakura and their target to mind. There is disbelief visible on the man's face even as he thrashes to try and pull away from the pinkette. Sakura is using her chakra to heal as well as hold herself in place, though, and he only manages to hurt himself more.

Sasuke mentally pics off the things they need one by one in his head and when they are done, watches Sakura whisper a few words to their target, eyes no longer cold like those of a shinobi on a mission but of a young girl feeling sympathy for an enemy that had gotten in her way. She then jerks out her arm with a single harsh tug. Blood splatters onto the ground and the man falls, dead before he even hits the floor.

Sasuke watches the lifeless form for a second before he notices that Sakura had made her way over to the windows and had thrown them open. "Sasuke~" She calls, eyes bright and shining. There is blood on her clothes and her entire right arm is soaked.

He smirks down at her and lets himself in through the opening. He kicks the dead body to the side and heads straight towards the bathroom. "Come on, let's get you cleaned up." He says.

Sakura lets out a small giggle and darts over but because she is Sakura, Sasuke spins around just in time to catch her as she slips on the puddle of blood on the floor. The two of them crash onto the floor and the first thing Sasuke feels is the crimson liquid soaking into the back of his shirt and Sakura's hand leaving a red hand print on his cheek.

"Must you?" He asks.

"Sorry." Sakura smiles down at him, still sitting on his chest. "But gimme a sec."

She reaches out with a finger and begins drawing something into his forehead. Sasuke sighs but stays still to let her finish. Sakura's finger continues its journey and begins making its way down his cheek, traces over his Adam's apple and stops just above his collar.

"There." Sakura scrambles to her feet and Sasuke grunts when she digs her hand into his stomach to push herself up. "Come on, Sasuke." She darts off into the bathroom.

He lies there for a few seconds and lets out another sigh before he pulls himself to his feet.

While he waits for Sakura to finish showering, he inspects the drawing Sakura done on him.

It is a messy drawing of a sakura tree and while the trunk and branches are merely wobbly lines and the blossoms five dots bunched together, he recognizes it immediately.

He checks to make sure no one is watching then activates his Sharingan to commit it to memory. He deactivates it just as quickly. He then burns Sakura's costume of this mission. He is done by the time she too is finished and he passes her the change he had brought.

Sakura skips out looking as good as new and the only thing reminding him of this mission is the stench of blood that clings to her skin. Then again, he is sure this will not be the last and soon, it will not be recognizable above the other victims killed by her hands.

He has Sakura sit on the corner of the bed, where there is no blood and makes her promise not to move before he goes to take a shower himself. He watches the blood slide down his skin and vanish down the drain.

Soon, he will cut the chains holding Sakura down to Orochimaru and he will make sure that when he returns, Konoha takes her in.

Because he has a faint feeling he will not mind wandering the world as a missing nin as long as she is there beside him.

* * *

 **Poll is still up, If you haven't voted yet, please do so~**

* * *

 **So, here's chapter seventeen~**

 _ **Darque: I like this.**_

 **Raven: Me too.**

 _ **Darque: I'm excited as to where this will go after they escape.**_

 **Raven: Me too.**

 _ **Darque: I can't wait to see how Konoha and other people react.**_

 **Raven: Me too.**

 _ **Darque: I think I'm amazing.**_

 **Raven: Me t-**

 _ **Darque: Why'd you stop?**_

 **Raven: Cause I don't agree.**

 _ **Darque: Why not?**_

 **Raven: Uh, cause I don't think you're amazing?**

 _ **Darque: Of course I am.**_

 **Raven: Uh, no.**

 _ **Darque: I am.**_

 **Raven: Am not.**

 _ **Darque: Am too.**_

 **Raven: You know our ANs are getting longer and longer with more and more stupid content?**

 _ **Darque: Yeah, from you.**_

 **Raven: I am not stupid.  
**

 _ **Darque: You**_ **so _are._**

 **Raven: What is with this sudden hate?**

 **Read and Review~**


	18. Chapter 18

_**Chapter EIGHTEEN**_

After a night spent sharing intel, Sasuke, Sakura and Kimimaro make their way back to Oto. Sakura shows no signs of trauma or anything anyone sane should be feeling after having torn through someone's chest and Sasuke is yet again hit with the realization that _this is not her first time_.

Kimimaro seems to read his thoughts and once they have secured a inn for the night and he has sent Sakura off to bath, he stops him by the mouth of their room.

"What did you think?" He asks softly.

Sasuke knows that the sound of the water and the sound of her happy singing is enough to cover up their soft voices. He eyes Kimimaro and is a little pleased to see the insecurity in his eyes.

"About?" He asks.

Kimimaro scowls just a little. "You know."

Sasuke rolls his eyes. "If you think something like that is going to chase me away, you're wrong."

The Kaguya relaxes a little. "You told your Hokage about Sakura." He says. "What did they say?"

"I haven't gotten a reply yet." Sasuke admits. "But it wouldn't matter."

Kimimaro's eyes blaze. "If this is about pride or something, then you may forget it. If you bring Sakura back to Konoha without the permission of the Hokage, she will be given a quick death at best-"

Sasuke snorts, years of practicing allowing him to make even such a sound seem posh. "I haven't said anything about returning to Konoha."

Kimimaro pauses.

"I told Tsunade that Konoha taking Sakura in is my condition to return." Kimimaro's eyes widen in shock but Sasuke pushes through. "Even after we leave, I have half an year to convince them, half an year to prove that I will be worth the price I set."

"And if they still say no?" Kimimaro asks, for the sake of asking.

Sasuke does not hesitate. "I will go rogue and Sakura will come with me."

* * *

Upon their return, the three of them are ordered to standby in their rooms until they are called forth for their mission report.

Sasuke sits in his room, eyes closed and in an almost meditating state, though his thoughts are elsewhere.

He knows what he wants, and that is to escape this snake pit as soon as possible. However, he knows that he cannot mess up and that while weakened, Orochimaru is still a Sannin. There is also the possibility Sasuke has been trying not to consider, and that is if Sakura decides to not go with him.

He knows that his current infiltration mission requires for him to remove Orochimaru along with all obstacles and that includes Sakura if she tries defend him.

After observations, he knows that Kimimaro is genuine when he says he wants Sakura out of here. The Kaguya has spent years reading over Sakura's medial and experimental files and that is not something one will do with a sense of half heartedness.

And that raises the next horrifying thought.

He has no idea what the Kaguya is planning to do afterwards. There is no doubt people will notice if Kimimaro decides to rebel and Sasuke is pretty sure that while he will try, he will not be able to wipe out every single one of Orochimaru's followers.

The Kaguya will be hunted down just like him, but at the same time, unlike him, he will not have the protection of one of the most renowned clans or shinobi village.

Sasuke sighs.

He will never voice this out loud and hopes he will not have no anytime in the near future.

He wants Kimimaro to come with them.

* * *

Orochimaru seems relatively pleased with the outcome of their mission. Kimimaro has already handed the Sannin the collected file of information so all Sasuke has to do is report what he saw with his own two cents added in.

When he is done, Orochimaru leers at him gleefully. "What did you think, Sasuke-kun?"

"About?" Sasuke is sure he has had a conversation that went along similar lines just recently.

"Sakura-chan truly is impressive, isn't she?"

Sasuke keeps his expression blank. "She is."

Orochimaru chuckles. "I see."

He does not offer any more and dismisses Sasuke with a flick of his hand. The Uchiha waits until he if far away from where the Snake Sannin's room before he grits his teeth and slams a fist into the wall.

He has no idea why, but anything Orochimaru-Sakura related gets on his nerves. He takes a deep breath to calm himself when he hears people approaching and quickly heads down the corridor.

He takes a left without thinking and finds himself right where he had considered heading over to. Even from where he stood, he can hear Sakura yelling something, probably to herself.

He smiled and reaches out to unlock the door.

* * *

Two days later, Kimimaro stops him in the corridor. It is a two second pause and there is no one around. Still, as files pass between hands, silent words are exchanged and they walk away from each other, Sasuke feels his spine prickling and he forces himself to calm his breathing.

He needs to grab Sakura's file to send to Tsunade because he knows that there is something wrong with her. He doesn't know if the tank he saw before was a life sustaining or simply one of Orochimaru's sick toys but he is sure Kimimaro does and he will have to find the time to ask the Kaguya later. He has a list of hideouts he plans to visit and destroy after he has defected. There are several people he wants to pick up along the way and while he has time, he cannot lower his guard. His next mission report is due the moment this particular hideout has fallen and the reply will be brought by a team from Konoha.

' _Orochimaru-sama is planning to take over your body exactly a week from today.'_

Sasuke makes a sharp turn and heads towards his room. He has plans to make.

* * *

 **Here's chapter eighteen~**

 _ **Darque: I dunno, it feels like we really dragged this out.**_

 **Raven: Kinda does.**

 _ **Darque: So, we got people betrayin next chapter.**_

 **Raven: Look forward to it.**

 _ **Darque: I certainly am.**_

 **Raven: Of course you are**

 **Read and Review~**


	19. Chapter 19

**So, here's our New-year mass update!**

 **Also...**

 **NEW INFO STORY AT THE BOTTOM!**

 ** _Chapter NINETEEN_**

Sasuke wakes up that morning with his heart thumping and his blood pumping through his veins. Anticipation and adrenaline is eating at him and he has to take a few deep breaths to calm down.

He cannot mess up.

He grabs his gear and the scrolls plodding everything he is going to take along with him, such as his weapons, his maintenance kit and a spare change of clothes. That is nearly all he owns so his room is relatively empty when he is done. He casts a genjutsu on the area so that it looks exactly as it had before. He secures his scrolls and his weapons to his belt and pouch before he leaves the room, closing the door with a firm gesture and not once does he look back.

* * *

Sasuke and Kimimaro had been dropping hints for a planned spar all week so when he arrives at his favorite training grounds, he is not surprised to see a large majority of the Oto shinobi body lingering around, trying not to act interested.

The day before, he had bumped into Kabuto who had hinted that he was leaving on a mission later that day before mockingly praising him for not messing up their mission with their petty disagreements. Sasuke had taken this in stride because it had meant Kabuto will be out when they strike and it was proof that even the bespectacled man had believed this upcoming spar was a result of pent up frustration for one another.

The crowd splits down the middle to allow him to reach the stairs and closes behind him.

Apparently, being able to watch two of Orochimaru's favorites beat each other half to death is sufficient entertainment.

Sasuke keeps his expression blank. None of these foolish, pitiable idiots know that the two 'favorites' are following a planned script leading to the deaths of all of them.

Kimimaro is already there and waiting "I thought you had run." He taunts.

Sasuke smirks arrogantly. "You wish."

Their spar is more than a show, especially to Sasuke, because he spends half the time trying to gauge Kimimaro's strength and his movement pattern. They are both skilled enough to improvise but there is a far less chance of a mess up if they can move together.

Sasuke and Kimimaro are not known as the most powerful for nothing and in a few minutes, they are sparing as though they had been doing so for their entire life. They are fighting as much as they are prodding and Sasuke is soon able to position his foot so that he slips into Kimimaro's vulnerable spot when the Kaguya goes for a kick and he feel warmth at his back when breathing in for a Katon jutsu leaves his lower back open.

And just like that, the two of them know they are ready.

Kimimaro subtly positions himself on the field and when he dodges the fire dragon that comes for him, it instead increases in speed and ferocity and sinks its burning fangs into the gathered crowd.

There is a shocked pause but that is all Kimimaro needs to tear through a whole group gathered by the mouth of the training grounds.

Sasuke unleashes a fireball at the shinobi running for the exit and burns them into a crisp without a hint of hesitation.

Kimimaro quickly picks out those to shocked or scared to move and soon, there is only a pile of bodies.

"Kabuto is out." Kimimaro says. "Sakura is probably with Orochimaru-sama."

"You have the patrols listed down?" Sasuke asks.

Kimimaro nods.

"I'll get Sakura, you get rid of the patrols." Sasuke orders.

Kimimaro scoffs a little at the commanding tone. "You are planning to kill Orochimaru in front of Sakura?" He asks.

Sasuke shrugs. "Same direction." He says.

"Do you want Sakura to change her mind?" Kimimaro asks. "What if she decides she wants to defend her father?"

"And if she does, are you going to forcefully pull her away?" Sasuke asks, out of curiosity.

Kimimaro pauses and sighs, running a hand through his hair. "Perhaps we should get rid of the patrols first." He says.

"Hn." Sasuke says, agreeing.

* * *

The two of them slip between the corridors, killing off anyone they came across, not allowing anyone to warn Orochimaru.

Soon, they are a corridor away from Kabuto's lab.

"Kabuto is is not due back for a few days." Kimimaro notes. "Should we still check?"

Sasuke pauses it to make it look like he was thinking.

In the end, they decide that by the time Kabuto is back or has even heard the beginning of the rumors, this base and Orochimaru would be long gone and it simply would not matter. Kimimaro knocks down the door with brute force.

Sasuke slips into the room first and catches sight of a curtained corner. Next to it is a table covered in scrolls and files on Sakura. He carefully peeks past the curtain and curses in his head when he sees that the tank is empty. He quickly pulls back, realizing that there was only one place she could be if he, Kimimaro and Kabuto were not with her. There was one other person allowed to handle her, after all.

Kimimaro, who had been looking over his shoulder, seems to come to the same conclusion.

Sasuke seals all the files in sight into his scroll while Kimimaro hovers back to the door to keep watch.

"Done?" He asks.

Sasuke nods. "Orochimaru." Is all he says before walking past the Kaguya and down the corridor.

"Yes." Kimimaro nods. "And Sakura."

The Uchiha stops in his steps and takes a deep breath. "Sakura." He agrees.

* * *

 **So, here's chapter nineteen~**

 _ **Darque: I wonder what Sakura and Oro-baby are doing.**_

 **Raven:...Oro...baby?**

 _ **Darque: Ye, well, Orochimaru was cute when he was young. Like, OMIGASH cute.**_

 **Raven:...Uh...right,**

 _ **Darque: Young Orochimaru is one of my most favorite characters. The Orochimaru that appeared in Naruto Gaiden is not bad either~**_

 **Raven: Ah...I see...not...**

* * *

 **NEW STORY:**

 **Those in Between (Sakura x Sasuke x Itachi) ((If there is a pairing)) :**

 **Sakura, a survived experiment, has skin that releases venom. To hide her from ROOT, she is taken in by Jiraiya and now acts as messenger for him and his spies. On a mission to find Tsunade Sakura meets Sasuke-the brother of a particular spy who pets her hair and buys her dango. Born to obey, she must take initiative for the first time in her life to save the people she cares for.**

* * *

 **Happy New Year~**

 **(** **If it's a little early, re-read later :) If it's late, here's a belated New year greeting.)**

 **We hope you all have had a good 2016 and will have a bright year ahead.**

 **We thanks you for your continuous support and we hope you continue to read and review our stories.**

* * *

 **Read and Review~**


	20. Chapter 20

_**Chapter TWENTY**_

Sakura clearly remembers the first time she opened her eyes to a clear world. Before that, she remembers faint scufflings and the piercing sounds that cut through her sensitive hearing. She even had faint memories of looking at this exact room through eye blurred black and a pained growling coming from the back of her mind.

Still, nothing could compare to the moment she opened her eyes to fixed shapes and bright colors.

At that time, she had felt as though nothing could faze her. Not the countless number of needles sticking out of her limbs, not the restraints that kept her immobile to the bed and the slightly daunting collection of sharp and pointy tools that lay in a tray a little to the side

Back then, everything had been new to her and she wouldn't know any better. She didn't know the meaning behind being hooked up to a life support of some sort. She didn't know the fear of being unable to move and escape. She didn't know the pain and deaths weapons could cause.

She had been a mere empty shell that was quickly fascinated by everything and absorbed anything offered to her.

And Orochimaru had offered her everything she needed to know to be useful to him.

He was her father and she loved him, after all.

* * *

Sakura's early days began with an injection.

"Your body hasn't fully recovered." Kabuto would always say. "This will help your body fix itself." From what, he didn't say and she didn't ask.

After that, they two of them would spend an hour simply walking around the base. Sakura would be allowed to watch the experiments being cut up and the shinobi training like they were meaning to kill.

She would ask questions and Kabuto would answer them, all with a smile on his face.

And back then, her only companion being Kabuto and a line of failed experiments, nothing had been more interesting than the defects she was set to dispose of.

* * *

Everything had color, and all color was different. Even if she touched red, it didn't feel that much different from blue. However, she got a different feeling when she looked at one, then the other.

"Color is different from texture." Kabuto had told her. "You touch texture but color reacts to one's own associations with the color that come from your own memories and experiences."

At Sakura's blank look, he had smiled and ran a hand through her hair. He had then proceeded to babble on about how some colors absorbed heat and whatnot but Sakura had stopped listening.

This world was so big and Sakura felt small already, as though she would drift away and get lost in its sheer magnitude unless she found something to cling on to.

* * *

Kabuto was grey. At first, Sakura had decided that according to the color of his hair, but now she knew there was something more to that.

She could never tell what Kabuto was thinking. He always gave her vague answers at best and she had come to know that if she pressed for answers, any hints would vanish into his unreadable smile.

She hadn't minded, though, not when Kabuto had been the only constant existence in her life.

Not when everything else had been a blur of colors and those she had thought maybe she could understand turned out to be bright red, both in color and the last traces of their existence they left on the ground.

* * *

Then came the day she realized that there was _so much more_ to this world that what she had been told of.

She hadn't been angry, though. She hadn't asked, so Kabuto had not answered. It was as simple as that.

In her world, where people came and went like the rainy season, she gained a permanent companion.

Kimimaro had entered her life in a flurry of white, crimson looking like delicate drops of paint on his fingertips and eyes restraining and concealing the flowers of madness and massacre within them.

He had brought with him a sense of calm to her abruptly colorful world. Suddenly, she realized that the world she had thought so fascinating had been more overwhelming than she had thought.

Sakura who had given everything colors to root herself to the ground slowly faded into the background as Kimimaro brought out in her someone she hadn't known existed. He filled the emptiness within her with something warm and fuzzy that she forgot about them.

For a while, she had thought that this would be enough.

Then, Sasuke had swept down on her in a rush of black, red eyes glowing nightmares in the shadows and each breath bringing fire to life, bringing with him a shade over the world she had previously thought to be full of brightness. He balanced out Kimimaro's peaceful presence with a sense of thrill. When with him, Sakura wanted to step out of the safety of her own shell. Kimimaro's filling presence was no longer enough. The Uchiha made her realize that the holes within her wasn't something she needed to fill, but it was certainly something she wanted to venture out herself in order to put together.

She had grown up in a world where the strong consumed the weak. She took power from every life she took in order to live for the person that had given her a reason to exist. However, now, she could feel herself slowly drifting away from everything she had thought to be a firm existence in her life and while a part of her was confused, the bigger, growing part of her wanted to continue experiencing this.

And it would not be the blinding flashes of red or the subtle shades of blue, but the polar opposites of black and white that would lead her there. Monochrome tone made her all the more aware of the subtle differences in her surroundings and she would hold onto this newfound knowledge.

For the first time, she would make her own decisions and would travel where her feet took her.

Sakura would no longer allow herself to be bound down by rules set down by other people. She would slither through the gaps given to her and slowly consume everyone that got in her way.

Like Ivy.

* * *

 **A little rushed...but here's chapter nineteen~**

 _ **Darque: Math test tomorrow~**_

 **Raven: I guess you haven't touched your textbook.**

 _ **Darque: Nope, the only thing I've touched is my calculator, which I need tomorrow.**_

 **Raven: That's better than I thought, actually, I thought you'd say something like 'my laptop'.**

 _ **Darque: I could've said that too, though I thought you would be sad, so I didn't.**_

 **Raven; I see, thanks for you consideration.**

 _ **Darque: Any time :)**_

 **Read and Review~**


	21. Chapter 21

_**Chapter TWENTY ONE**_

Sasuke feels himself quickening with each step. Behind him, Kimimaro matches his pace, eyes narrowed and shoulders tense, like he is expecting a fight any second. Sasuke does not sense anyone approaching but he too keeps a hand on his weapon.

"Are we going to creep up or are we going to barge in?" He wonders out loud.

Kimimaro moves so he is walking right beside him and turns to look directly into his eyes. "Which one do you think Sakura will enjoy more?" He asks.

Sasuke scoffs. "Definitely the latter."

"So you're going to kick the door down like some hero." Kimimaro muses. "Should we decide on catch phrases or would your monologue on evil come first?"

"Shut up." Sasuke makes a sharp turn and they are a few corridor away from Orochimaru's lab.

Kimimaro shrugs. "There's a patrol we're scheduled to meet next corridor over." He says.

"Very close to the lab." Sasuke notes.

Kimimaro nods. "We have to be very careful."

Sasuke casts a genjutsu on the Oto shinobi and they are out before they even realize what is happening. Careful to keep their chakra signatures covered, they quickly incapacitate them.

Without a word, Sasuke wipes the blood off of his blade while Kimimaro unceremoniously crushes the bone sword he has just used.

"So, which one?" The Kaguya asks.

"Neither." Sasuke says. "We knock on the door and let ourselves in."

Kimimaro huffs softly and the two of them pause one more time outside the Snake Sannin's office to nod at each other before Sasuke lights his hand up with lightning and shoots through the door. There is a small grunt of pain followed by a surprised gasp.

"Where was the knock?" Kimimaro asks.

"Too much chakra." Sasuke mutters. Lifts his sword with his free hand and cuts the door down with a few neat slices.

In the short time he hasn't seen him, Orochimaru has become so much more frail looking. The Sannin is confined to his bed but no matter how he looks, Sasuke feels a chill run down his spine when his snake-like eyes land on him.

The man has his hands crossed in front of him, blocking Sasuke's lightning blade.

"I expected it to be you. Of course you'd come for me."

Kimimaro makes his way into the room after him, face blank and void of any expression.

Sasuke narrows his eyes. "There's nothing left for you to teach me, Orochimaru." He says, because he isn't sure it this is where he should reveal the truth about his presence in Oto or not.

He takes a few steps until he is now in the room. He scans for other chakra signatures and detects one, the faint flare of Sakura's chakra, coming from the corner of the room. With a quick glance, he notes that that particular corner has a curtain setup and Sasuke thinks he will probably see a glass tank if he peeks around it.

"There was something I wanted, something I needed, and for that, I was willing to risk myself in a place like this. You were after the Sharingan, the most powerful you could find, and both Itachi and Shisui were out of the question; they was too skilled for you, so you came after me." He narrows his eyes further. "You preyed on my grief after the massacre and my obvious position behind both Itachi and Shisui in terms of skill to draw me away from the safety of the village."

He strengthens his chakra when he feels Orochimaru beginning to struggle. "However, I have gained what I came here for in the first place. I no longer see a purpose for being here."

"A bold statement from an Uchiha nursling." Orochimaru mocks. He then shifts his glare from him to the Kaguya. "I did not expect this from you, Kimimaro-kun."

The white haired teen does not reply for a while and Sasuke does not sense even a hint of hesitation off the other teen. It seems the Kaguya meant every word when he claimed loyalty for Sakura. "I no longer believe you are suitable to take care of Sakura." He says softly. "No, I never did. It just took me a little too long to notice it."

Sasuke raises his sword and moves to stab Orochimaru, but all he needs to see is a flash of white for him to know that Orochimaru has disposed of this body. The two teens turn around, ready to fight.

A giant white snake towers over them, its body made of a countless number of smaller snakes. Kimimaro lets out a soft sigh at the sight and Sasuke decides he kind of understand the Kaguya's feeling.

"In order to move from body to body, you experimented on yourself and this is the end result, huh?" He asks.

"Two of my potential hosts here in the same place." Orochimaru hisses. "Now, give me your body!"

Sasuke has no idea who the snake is talking to. The two of them jump to avoid the initial lunge and they easily chop up the smaller white snakes that fly towards them. They land with their backs to the door and they share a small nod before turning back to their opponent.

Sasuke cuts up the snakes then sheaths his sword. There is no time to waste and he cannot risk underestimating the Sannin. He lowers his kimono from his shoulders, baring his upper body. Kimimaro, who had already done so the moment they had begun their spar, yanks out two bones before he recalls the rest.

Sasuke is the first to call upon the powers of the curse mark and almost as though he was lulled along, Kimimaro does the same.

"A snake slithers across the ground, dreaming of the skies it will never be able to fly through. Still, it desperately kept an eye on the baby bird it nurtured in its own nest, not knowing that that would be its own undoing." He feels a countless number of scaly bodies slithering up his limbs and takes a deep breath. He presses further into the calls of the Cursed Seal and Sasuke revels in the power of the monsters he has become.

He shreds away the snakes and meets Orochimaru's gaze. Inhumane wings sprout from his back and he glares at the Sannin through Sharingan eyes. "Because the bird is a hawk and the snake is now the prey to one who is ready to take the skies."

* * *

 **Chapter twenty one here~**

 **Just a note; 'First Time to see the World' has been completed (Our second complete story, yay~) If you haven't checked it out, please do so :)**

 _ **Darque: So, mostly canon Sasuke vs Orochimaru with slight changes cause Kimimaro is there.**_

 **Raven: Things will really start changing after they leave Oto.**

 _ **Darque: I can't wait.**_

 **Raven: Me neither.**

 _ **Darque: No more mad reading of manga to compare timelines.**_

 **Raven; No more hunting down key quotes.**

 _ **Darque: No more crosschecking of maps and character stats and locations.**_

 **Raven: I get the picture, sora mea.**

 _ **Darque: NOW I SHALL COMPLETELY CONTROL THIS FIC! MWAHAHAHA HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA~**_

 **Raven: Uh...mkay.**

 **Read and Review~**


	22. Chapter 22

_**Chapter TWENTY TWO**_

"So there's your monologue."

Sasuke turns to Kimimaro, who is also in level two of his Cursed Seal. The Kaguya has several huge bones sprouting from his back and in place for Sasuke's wings, sports a tail that reminds him of a lizard.

"Every dramatic entrance needs a monologue." He replies.

Kimimaro shoots him a small smile and Sasuke has a feeling they have been hanging around Sakura too much.

* * *

The battle that follows is violent and flashy but it is short.

Regardless of Orochimaru's current appearance, it is obvious that the Snake Sannin is greatly weakened and both Sasuke and Kimimaro see this. In mere minutes, Orochimaru lies on the ground in shredded pieces. Sasuke and Kimimaro are covered in blood but neither are hurt enough to impair their movements. Orochimaru seems to realize the only possible ending to their fight, because he pulls the card both Sasuke and Kimimaro have dreaded.

"SAKURA!"

Sasuke freezes in his steps and he hears the sound of glass cracking. Beside him, Kimimaro lets out of threatening growl and the grip on his bone sword tightens.

"Sakura." Orochimaru repeats, sounding almost hysterical. "Come protect me."

There is a loud crash of shattering glass and the sound of gushing liquid and Sasuke feels a huge surge of chakra from the corner of the room. A small, delicate hand reaches out from behind the curtains and draws back the cloth. Sakura limps out from behind it, whole body soaking wet and nothing covering her apart from a flimsy hospital gown.

"Otou-sama?" She murmurs. "What..." Her eyes widen as she takes in the sight before her. "What are you doing, Sasuke, Kimimaro?"

"That does not matter." Orochimaru hisses. "Dispose of them immediately."

"Sakura..." Sasuke trails off when Sakura turns her confused gaze towards him. The fact that she is not immediately reacting after seeing them attack her father is a start. He hold his ground and her gaze, waiting to see what she would do.

The girl's chakra is fluctuating and Sasuke is sure it is because of the Cursed Seals active in the area.

"Sakura!" Orochimaru repeats.

"But-but, Otou-sama!" Sakura turns pleadingly towards the Snake Sannin. "It's Sasuke and Kimimaro! Why am I to attack them? They're my friends!"

Sasuke realizes with a start that Sakura did not realize what exactly was going on. She had never seen Orochimaru under someone nor has she seen Orochimaru losing a fight and she did not understand what it meant to lose in this situation.

To her, Orochimaru has always been a being of absolute rule and she has never understood the consequences of him losing, just like Orochimaru has never seen it fit to teach her what that meant. Here, Sakura will choose between the pillar and reason for her existence and the chance to explore the world. Sasuke feels dread pooling in his stomach and almost as if on cue, he feels his limbs become heavy. In seconds, he is unable to support himself and he collapses to his knees. He hears a grunt and knows Kimimaro is in similar states.

Orochimaru's face is full of triumph and he leers at them.

"The body fluids of a great serpent evaporates upon contact with air." Orochimaru hisses out. "It has an numbing effect on those who come in contact with it. It seems it is already weakening you." The giant snake struggles to right itself. "I am immortal; not even your most powerful techniques can kill me!"

Try as he might, Sasuke cannot feel his limbs at all. Kimimaro does not seem to be having any better luck than him.

Sakura still does not move from her position. She looks curiously between the three of them, still not realizing what exactly was going on. "Otou-sama?"

Orochimaru opens his jaws wide and flies towards Sasuke, who is trying to take deep breath and control erratic chakra enough to attempt a hand sign-less fire ball but suddenly, there is a hand grabbing onto the snake's hair, stopping him.

Orochimaru lets out a forced cough, eyes wide in disbelief. "Sakura-"

"You can't, Otou-sama." Sakura says, pupils dilated and lips trembling. "They're my friends."

Orochimaru lashes out at the girl, who is clearly not expecting it. She gets flung into the wall above Orochimaru's now destroyed bed and slides to the floor with a pained gasp. That is all Kimimaro seems to need, because he is suddenly struggling to his feet with renewed vigor. Sasuke uses this brief distraction to create distance between him and the snake. His limbs are weak, but he can deal.

Now their numbers are a disadvantage. Sasuke doesn't know if Orochimaru will consider Sakura a vessel as last resort. Until now, she had been more useful as an individual than a body but after that act of rebellion Sakura had unknowingly committed, will Orochimaru deem her no longer necessary?

There is also the fact that none of them know whom Orochimaru will prioritize, him or Kimimaro. He also does not know the extent to which Orochimaru can control Sakura with the Cursed Mark, especially due to there being more than one embedded into her body.

A single glance over at Kimimaro and a single agreement pass between them.

They needed to end this real quick.

"Sakura, come here." Orochimaru orders.

Sakura looks torn between complying with the Snake Sannin and pressing for more answers. Sasuke watches the unconcealed emotions dance in Sakura's gaze and his body moves on its own.

"I'm going back to Konoha." He blurts out. Orochimaru lets out a hiss of rage and Kimimaro does a double take to eye him in disbelief. However, Sasuke keeps his gaze on Sakura's green ones.

Sakura's eyebrows scrunch up in the beginning of a frown. "Ko-Konoha?" She asks. "Where Naruto and Itachi live?"

Sasuke nods, a little pleased she had remembered the stories he had told her.

"Oh." Sakura bites her lip. "You're leaving?"

Sasuke's heart once again clenches at just how naive Orochimaru had kept her. "I am." He says. "Come with me."

"I'll be lonl-huh?" Sakura blinks rapidly. "Wha-to Konoha?"

Sasuke nods.

Sakura glances between Orochimaru, Sasuke and Kimimaro. "Oh. I-"

"Sakura." Orochimaru snaps out harshly. "What are you doing."

Sakura jumps at the tone and quickly glances down. "No-nothing."

Sasuke moves to step in between Sakura and Orochimaru. His back is to the Snake Sannin and Kimimaro moves hastily to cover for him. "Come with me." He repeats.

"Oh, but I'm not allowed to." Sakura says. "Otou-sama-"

"But do you want to?"

"Yes!" Sakura quickly slaps a hand over her mouth. "I mean..."

"Come with me."

Sakura eyes Sasuke and her gaze quickly flies over to Orochimaru's enraged ones. She flinches just a little and glances back down again. "I..."

Orochimaru resumes the battle. Sakura spins around at the loud crash and fear fills her eyes as she watches Kimimaro barely dodge out of Orochimaru's jaws. "Kimimaro! Otou-sama, please-"

A barrage of weapons go her way and Sakura neatly dances out of the way. "No, I-"

Orochimaru flies past a slightly winded Kimimaro, aiming for Sasuke, who is about to prepare a fireball technique, when Sakura jumps in front of him. "Otou-sama!"

The white snakes Orochimaru had shot out met Sakura's own snakes from her sleeves. She easily cuts away the few that manage to slip past with a kunai.

"Step aside, Sakura." Orochimaru hisses.

"They're my friends." Sakura says. "You can't kill them."

* * *

 **So, here's chapter twenty two~**

 _ **Darque: I actually have no idea how to write this. Like, how would Sakura react to something like this?**_

 **Raven: There were five ways we could have taken this; 1)Sakura flies to Orochimaru's aid without complaint, 2) Sakura hesitates but helps Orochimaru, 3)Sakura freezes out and watches the fight, 4)Sakura hesitates but helps Sasu/Kimi duo, 5)Sakura flies to Sasu/Kimi dup's aid without question.**

 ** _Darque: I guess this is number 3.5? Somewhere in between 3 and 4?_**

 **Raven: I guess. Like you said, we don't have experience in these kinds of things. We have no idea how a person depraved of almost any human interaction choose between their creator and the two people who made them feel things more than they have ever experience before.**

 ** _Darque: But of course, Sakura will be leaving with Sasuke and Kimimaro in the end._**

 **Raven: Or, we could be complete douches and make Sakura decide to jump in between the final blows and die and end of story.**

 ** _Darque: We could?_**

 **Raven:...Uh...lets not**

 _ **Darque: Mkay, then.**_

 **Raven:...**

 **Read and Review~**


	23. Chapter 23

_**Chapter TWENTY THREE**_

It is times like this when Sasuke is reminded that no matter what, Sakura was Orochimaru's daughter. In the dim light of the destroyed room, he can see the small but certain similarities between them. Sakura's skin is as pale as the snakes, which brings out her unique coloring. When she narrows her eyes, her pupils appear snake-like, something he has been pretending not to notice.

The way she flares her chakra in a warning threat was also similar to the way Orochimaru used his Killing Intent in the Forest of Death all those years ago.

And she is facing up to him with an expression he has never seen on her face before.

"Sakura."

Orochimaru's voice is warning threatening and final.

Sakura, though, holds her ground. "Don't fight, otou-sama." She says pleadingly. "Please don't."

Orochimaru's answer comes in the form of another dozen snakes. Sakura hacks them away with a blue chakra blade Sasuke has once seen Kabuto use.

"Oto-"

"If you are unable to obey, you are of no further use to me." Orochimaru hisses, venom dripping from his very tone. "I thought I had you tamed better."

Sakura flinches but Kimimaro's firm chest meets her back when she takes an unconscious step back. "You never tamed her." The Kaguya snarls. "Sakura has been her own person from the very beginning. All you had on her was her naivety caused by your selfish decision to keep her from the outside." He reaches out to grasp Sakura's arm when she stumbles. "I should have never let her stay with you."

"You do not have a choice, Kimimaro-kun." Orochimaru sneers. He draws himself up to his full height once again, his regeneration skills somehow able to keep him together.

"We all have a choice." Sasuke buts him. "We just pretend we don't to make ourselves feel better." Kimimaro flinches at his words but both of them know it is not directed at him. "Do you not have a sliver of humanity left?" He asks harshly. "Sakura is your own daughter."

"And I treated her as such and look at her now, betraying me for a pair of traitors." Sakura shrinks back under Orochimaru's harsh glare and Sasuke, finally having enough of this, steps in front of her, completely hiding her away from the Sannin's view.

"You shouldn't blame her for having a brain capable of making her own choices. Parents are supposed to encourage their children." Sasuke has no idea why he is lecturing Orochimaru but this is a sore topic for him.

"You would know all about that, wouldn't you?" Orochimaru punctuates the last word with a lunge forward. Sasuke dances neatly out of the way and Kimimaro follows, Sakura wrapped carefully in his arms.

Orochimaru coils up threateningly. "Sakura, this is your last chance. Return to my side."

Sakura's eyes widen a little as she shifts in Kimimaro's grip. "I-"

"Sakura." Sasuke says sharply, stopping her in her tracks. "Sakura, listen to me."

Sasuke turns his back to Orochimaru, knowing full well that this is the most dangerous thing he can do at this moment in time. However, he trusts Kimimaro to have his back and wants to believe that Sakura will give him at least a warning if Orochimaru tries to attack.

Sakura meets his firm gaze with wavering green eyes of her own. "Sasuke?" She whispers.

"I will take care of you." He promises solemnly. "After this, we'll travel around for a while. We can go anywhere you like." This is a little lie, but Sasuke knows Sakura wouldn't particularly mind. Everything would be new for her, after all. "You, me and Kimimaro. The three of us."

Sakura turns to the Kaguya at the mention of his name. "You're leaving too, Kimimaro?" She asks.

"I...I am." Kimimaro's eyes are wide and vulnerable, barely concealing the fear and desperation in his eyes. They are the most open Sasuke has ever seen them and he is once again reminded that Kimimaro has cared for Sakura longer than anyone else has. "So please, come with us."

Sakura shoots another worried glance at Orochimaru and Sasuke begins to feel a little sense of irritation. He does not understand what Sakura sees in Orochimaru, but he does understand the fear of leaving that one thing you used to anchor yourself to the world of living. He knows the weight behind the decision, but he is annoyed that Sakura sees Orochimaru as this link.

Because it shows just how sheltered from freedom and choices she has been.

The sudden wave of Killing Intent is enough to shock Sasuke, who had been expecting a frontal attack, into immobility. He remembers the panic he had felt years ago in the Forest of Death when he couldn't move, so he recognizes it when something flashes across Orochimaru's expression. He steels himself for the desperate final attack, which is mostly always more powerful than not, and freezes for the countless number of time when Sakura falls to the ground with a bloodcurdling scream.

Sasuke is instantly reminded of the time he had walked in on one of Orochimaru's experiment sessions with the girl. He feels his Cursed Seal flare in response to Sakura's forced activation and he struggles with it's pulls as he watches the black marks of both the Heaven and the Earth Cursed Seal begins to eat away at Sakura's skin.

Both him and Kimimaro run towards her at the same time, but the pressuring surge of chakra alone forces them to a halt. The force only seems to strengthen as Sakura's cries of pain begin to rise in volume.

At one point, he sees another Cursed Seal flare to life on her upper arm but it is gone as soon as it has appeared, consumed by the black flames of the Cursed Seal of Heaven.

Orochimaru's insane laughter seems like nothing but a background noise as he watches her pale skin, white and innocent as snow, begin to darken like the spreading of poison.

Sakura's screams are harshly cut off by her own desperate suction of breath. Sasuke feels a sense of helplessness he hasn't felt in a while as he watches someone he has come to care for tear at their own limbs in order to try and escape excruciating pain

And a second later, Sasuke sees a very familiar wing tear itself out from Sakura's back.

* * *

 **Here's chapter twenty three minus one~**

 **Raven: What is ^that?**

 _ **Darque: What is what?**_

 **Raven: The 23 - 1 thing.**

 _ **Darque: Well, you see, this chapter is chapter 22 and 23 - 1 = 22, so-**_

 **Raven: I know that. I'm better than you in math, and science, and history, and geography, and everything else there is to learn.**

 _ **Darque: But you asked me what 23 - 1 was?**_

 **Raven:...I was asking why you were trying to math.**

 _ **Darque: Why can't I math?**_

 **Raven: Because you don't know how?**

 _ **Darque: I do! See, 23 - 1 = 22.**_

 **Raven: I bet you google calculated that.**

 _ **Darque: WRONG! I used the one on my phone! HA!**_

 **Raven: =.=...why are you bragging about that?**

 _ **Darque: Because you are WRONG! MWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA.**_

 **Raven:...Uh...okay?**

 **Read and Review~**


	24. Chapter 24

**New story info at the bottom~**

 _ **Chapter TWENTY FOUR**_

Kimimaro's panicked cry of Sakura's name shakes Sasuke out of his frozen state.

The girl is clutching at her head, the single visible eye from between her fingers and bangs appearing unhinged and insane. Her fingers are white from the way she is clenching her fists and she stumbles backwards, like she cannot support herself.

"The power put into the seal during its activation affects the time it takes for a seal to absorb another." Orochimaru notes, like his daughter is not making bloodcurdling sounds from pain he is causing and his room walls aren't destroyed after the betrayal of two of his most powerful shinobi. "The weakers seals were taken over by the Heaven and Earth seal faster than previous times."

Sasuke does not know why he is still shocked. He had grown up in a power hungry household where his father had been obviously more focused on his prodigious old brother, but he cannot imagine Uchiha Fugaku being willing to sacrifice one of his family, or even anyone in the clan, for an experiment as dehumanizing as this.

He wouldn't ever know, though, because everyone was dead, and once again, someone he has come to care for is hurting right before his eyes.

"Sakura." He calls out, fighting to keep the desperation out of his voice.

Sakura makes no signs of hearing. The girl writhes on the floor, ragged screams torn from her throat.

The painful humming in the back of Sasuke's mind begins to strengthen again. The power of her Cursed Marks also seem to be enough to pull both Sasuke and Kimimaro into the darkness and Orochimaru does not miss this.

The Snake Sannin flies forward with renewed vigor and Sasuke finds himself hesitating, for a split second unsure of whether move towards Sakura or turn completely to face Orochimaru. Sasuke's eyes burn with the recognition of a threat but his body is suddenly heavy and he cannot move. He is about to draw the Sannin into his Sharingan in a last ditch attempt to finish him off but he doesn't have to because suddenly, there is a hand erupting from the Snake's chest. The snake's blood, most likely poisonous, lands on Sasuke's face. It sizzles against the skin and stings a little but, at this moment in time, he doesn't not recognize the pain.

The hand, dark in color and covered in faint scale like patterns, flexes, pushing in further.

"Sa-kura?" Orochimaru wheezes out.

"You can't, otou-sama." Sakura says quietly. "They're my friends." The pinkette stands firmly, eyes blazing with raw emotion Sasuke has never seen before in her eyes.

She yanks her arm out, the poison which should have burned Sakura's skin sliding off her limb without protest.

Sasuke is sure that is because of their parent-child similarities, but that quickly flies out of his mind when Sakura collapses a second later. He manages to catch her and she lies on top of him, completely unconscious.

The moment the chakra circulation stops, Sakura's Cursed marks begin to vanish, but Sasuke's Sharingan has already caught sight of her level two activation and he cannot get the sight out of his mind. Instantly, as though reacting to Sakura's own receding Cursed Mark, Sasuke and Kimimaro's Cursed Marks begin to fade back to their seals.

The other thing Sasuke cannot comprehend is the fact that Sakura had attacked her father with what could possibly be a fatal blow.

"The Cursed Mark amplifies a desire and impacts it in a negative way." Kimimaro says, like he is reading from a text book. "Sakura..."

Sasuke runs a hand gently through Sakura's hair. If she had wanted to protect her friends, or if she had secretly hated her father, he did not know and he didn't plan on asking anytime soon.

What he did know, was that the Cursed Mark lived up to its name and it was not something he would wish on to anyone, ever.

Kimimaro limps over. "She must be exhausted." He says quietly. "One Cursed Seal takes a great toll on the bearer's body. Imagine two."

Sasuke grunts in agreement, the hair on the back of his neck tingling. He can sense Orochimaru moving slowly but he knows that the man is done.

"Look at you, Sakura-chan." He hisses. "Thinking you're all grown up and can make your own decisions."

Sakura does not even stir and Sasuke is glad for that. Kimimaro moves threateningly towards the snake to shield the two of them.

Orochimaru does not seem to notice this, or was doing a very good job of ignoring the towering Kaguya. "Did you really not notice?" He asks mockingly, in a way that makes Sasuke want to shove his sword through his face. The Snake chuckles softly. "It was seven years ago, wasn't it, Sasuke?"

It take Sasuke a second to realize what the Sannin is talking about.

The Uchiha Massacre.

He remembers clearly that Shisui had been out on a mission and Sasuke had insisted that Itachi spend his rare free day with him at a park. If he hadn't, perhaps Itachi would have been able to save everyone.

But why was Orochimaru bringing it up now?

Orochimaru's smile is cruel even as he lies there, bleeding his life out.

"I must admit, Sakura did a very neat job. She left me with a handful of the most powerful Sharingan in shinobi history to pick from."

It takes Sasuke's exhausted mind two seconds instead of one to comprehend the exact words that had come out of the Sannin's mouth and an extra seconds to realize it's implications.

Orochimaru's hysterical laughter vanishes into a dull pounding in the back of his mind as the weight in his arms suddenly seem to get ten times heavier.

No one sees the single white snake that slips into Sakura's robes.

* * *

 **NEW STORY:**

 **The Invisible Sun within Us (Naruto x KHR Crossover):**

 **Sakura was supposed to be dead, so when she realizes that she is in the body of a child, she curses fate. She curses Naruto's pain, Sasuke's path of revenge, Kakashi's broken start and the second chance she doesn't deserve. Still, she swears to keep the girl alive. She had stolen the life of a girl with so much in front of her; it was the least she could do. Sakura reborn as Chrome**

* * *

 **So yeah, late update...sorry about that.**

 _ **Darque: I cannot wait to write the Sasuke Naruto reunite scene.**_

 **Raven: Don't write it yet. Write the part that leads up to it first -.-**

 ** _Darque: I know. I haven't started it yet. Ughghgh._**

 **Raven: Write it in order, because if you write the fun parts befor ethe boring parts, you wont have nay motivation to work towards.**

 _ **Darque: Smart.**_

 **Raven: Of course. Who do you think you're talking to?**

 _ **Darque:...Okay.**_

 **Read and Review~**


	25. Chapter 25

_**Chapter TWENTY FIVE**_

Namikaze Naruto had grown up surrounded by amazing people.

His father is Hokage and his mother is one of the last living Uzumaki. His Jounin instructor is Sharingan no Kakashi while his other teacher is Jiraiya of the Sannin. Itachi is the prodigy of the generation while Shisui is just as famous in his own right.

And of course, while he will never admit it out loud, there is Sasuke, his childhood best friend, who he thinks is probably one of the most amazing people out of all of them.

Naruto had found out about the years long mission from Sasuke himself and he will never admit that he had cried the night of his friend's departure, of frustration and anger.

He knows Sasuke had suffered since the massacre of his clan and he knows that there are evil people out there who want to take advantage of the gaping hole in his friend's chest in some twisted way and he didn't think it was fair that the village too, was taking advantage of someone who was trying to take advantage of it.

He knows Sasuke had willingly agreed to the mission, because he had been there whenever his friend grew too tired to pretending to be whole and fell apart, and he knows that a purpose will be what keeps his friend together, and if that purpose was to sneak into the hideout of one of the most dangerous criminals, he would do it.

He knows all this, but that does not mean he likes it.

Naruto spends his days smiling and hanging out with his friends and doing missions but all that really goes on in his mind is a countdown towards Sasuke's next mission report and particularly, that messy note attached to it written for him.

And after all this time, all the insults and unspoken words of encouragement exchanged on paper, he will be seeing him. In person.

When Naruto had learnt that Sasuke would finally be pulling away from Orochimaru, he had been ecstatic. He had stormed into Tsunade's office and demanded and begged and pleaded that he be put on the team that went after him.

Tsunade had raged and ranted for a while about privacy and doors but she had soon agreed; it wasn't like she had been planning to _not_ put him on it.

* * *

Soon, Naruto finds himself at the gates of Konoha with Itachi, Shisui and Shikamaru standing around him. Kakashi and Neji, along with a few other skills shinobi stands a little behind them as a backup squad. In a way, it was a team consisting of the best of the best, because even Naruto understands that you can never be too prepared against Orochimaru.

A small crowd had gathered at the gates. Everyone who had been their classmate and had graduated with them is there. So is Sai, his current teammate, Minato and Kushina.

Tsunade stand in front of them all, hands on hips and a firm expression on her face. "Remember, you mission is to initiate contact and make sure he's okay. You know, both eyeballs and not half eaten with a snake stuck down his throat."

Itachi narrows his eyes and Tsunade scoffs, idly waving away the subtle glare. "I will leave any other judgement to you, Uchiha." She glances at Shisui. "Itachi."

Shisui pouts but Tsunade ignores that too. "You are to receive a full report in person and brings back with you anything Sasuke may have managed to salvage from the snake's base." Tsunade then takes Itachi to the side and whispers a few last orders. Naruto strains his ears and picks up 'Kaguya...girl...'.

He frowns. Did Sasuke get himself a girlfriend named Kaguya?

He isn't given much time to ponder this, though, because they are soon ready to depart. Naruto flies out from within the walls alongside his teammates.

* * *

It feels too soon when Itachi decides to set up camp for the night. The moment they are settled, Itachi gives them a runthrough of the information he had received from Tsunade.

"Sasuke's defection would have been yesterday." He begins. "So it will be no surprise if the news has already traveled to Orochimaru's other hideouts."

"We'll have to be wary of Oto shinobi." Shikamaru notes. "We don't know how much they know, but if they even suspect Sasuke's loyalty still lies with Konoha, I'm sure they'll expect us to try and initiate contact."

Itachi acknowledges the Nara's words with a nod and continues. "Sasuke may be travelling with a few companions." He says. "We will approach without hostility and we will let Sasuke explain the situation to us first."

"Companions?" Shisui asks. "Oto friends?"

Itachi's gaze darkens. "If they are of any threat, we will dispose of them."

"What if they're Sasuke's friends?" Naruto asks.

Itachi hesitates and Naruto pushes on. "I bet if Sasuke hasn't gotten rid of them yet, he likes them, right? Maybe they were his only friends in the snake's lair."

He is really glad that Sasuke seems to have found someone in Orochimaru's place. Of course, his position will be irreplaceable, but he is glad that Sasuke hadn't been alone all this time.

He stops listening to Itachi after a while, because it really isn't his job to think. This time, his job is to hug his friend and be the first to welcome him home.

* * *

 **Just a note:**

 **Kaguya is commonly a girl's name, so yeah...**

* * *

 **So, this chapter was kinda short...and not proof read. At all.**

 _ **Darque: Just a little into Naruto before we get back to the main part of the story.**_

 **Raven: Hm, I wonder what Sasuke, Sakura and Kimimaro are doing?**

 _ **Darque: Well, they're waiting backstage, rehearsing the lines I had printed out for them.**_

 **Raven: Uh...Did you use invisible ink? Because I can't see anything.**

 _ **Darque:...Shut up.**_

 **Raven:...Mkay.**

 _ **Darque: Anyways...yeah...**_

 **Read and Review~**


	26. Chapter 26

_**Chapter TWENTY SIX**_

Sasuke and Kimimaro destroy what is left of the base, as much of it as they can, before they depart with the intention of simply putting distance between them and the remains of the base.

Sasuke had booked himself an inn in preparation and all it takes is for him is to blink in the direction of the inn owner and Kimimaro is allowed to share their room as well.

The Kaguya lays the girl down on the blanket Sasuke had spread and the two of them, unsure of what to do now, move away. Sasuke sits by the window while Kaguya hovers by the door and eventually, he sits down too.

It is hours later when Sasuke brings up the conversation they had both been hovering over.

"Did you know?"

He does not elaborate but Kimimaro knows what he is talking about.

"I...did not."

Sasuke looks into the Kaguya's eyes and has a feeling he is not lying.

Kimimaro hesitates then continues. "And Sakura did not either. She still does not."

A surge of anger wells up within him but Sasuke suppresses it, knowing that they cannot risk causing a commotion when they had just pulled of something so big.

And to an extent, he understands what Kimimaro means.

Sakura is clueless of what her actions mean. To her, tracking down a potential recruit and massacring an entire family probably wasn't any different, and from her upbringing, she probably didn't know any better.

"Do you think she remembers the name?" Sasuke asks. "Or the faces of those she's killed?"

Kimimaro merely looks at him and Sasuke remembers the gaps in Sakura's memories, caused by...

"It is Orochimaru." Kimimaro says. "It is him that has engraved this way of living into her, and it is him that ordered her to kill who she kills. If Sakura is at fault-" The Kaguya swallows. "It will be that she was born as the Snake's daughter with the abilities she has. It will be that she did not try to escape the only man she's known her entire life."

Sasuke thinks back to orochimaru's dead body and tries to calm himself down. Kimimaro gives him a few seconds before he changes the topic.

"What are our plans?"

Sasuke briefly glances down at Sakura's sleeping face. "I will meet up with a team from Konoha at the border of Fire Country. From there, I will be tracking down Orochimaru's other bases and destroy them."

"Kabuto is still alive." Kimimaro says.

"He is." Sasuke narrows his eyes. "We will have to deal with him."

Kimimaro seems to sag against the door. "When do we leave?"

Sasuke is surprised at how willing Kimimaro seems to leaving the decision making to him. "We'll take the rest of today to rest." He decides. "Then we will see Sakura's condition and leave when she is ready."

Kimimaro nods in agreement. "Okay."

The Kaguya soons closes his eyes, still sitting up with his back to the door. Sasuke can find many faults with all three of them sleeping at the same time but he doubts he can really fall asleep with what had happened earlier today. Not to mention, he is also sure he will wake up at the slightest of movements.

With this thought in mind, he follows Kimimaro's example and closes his eyes.

When he wakes up, he will be very surprised at how fast he had fallen asleep.

* * *

Sakura wakes up at sunset the following day.

Kimimaro had gone out to find them dinner. Sasuke, unable to wait, had been heating up something to eat when the girl bolts up in her bed. Sasuke is at her side in an instant, momentarily forgetting of his mixed feelings towards her.

"Sakura?"

The girl blinks rapidly a few times, as if to clear some sort of haze, then turns to look at him. "Sasuke!" She winces at her own sudden movements.

"Stay still." Sasuke presses a hand to her forehead and notes that her temperature has gone down. He passes her a cup then a bowl of fruit he had cut up earlier for himself. Sakura drowns them down with a vigor.

"How are you feeling?" He asks.

Sakura pauses mid bite and quickly swallows before answering. "Okay." She says. "Just...okay." Her eyes go blank for a second and Sasuke remembers that the girl had helped them kill her own father in order to help them escape. "Sakura-"

The girl quickly lifts her head. Sasuke moves back in order to avoid being bashed in the chin. "I'm okay." She repeats.  
The Uchiha hesitantly ruffles her hair and does not meet her gaze. "Do you know about the Uchiha?" Sasuke asks slowly.

Sakura blinks in confusion. "That's you." She says proudly. "Which makes the rest of your family Uchiha too."

Sasuke nods. "But they aren't here anymore."

Sakura frowns. "Why not?" She asks.

"Because-"

Kimimaro chooses that moment to return. Sasuke jerks back from where he had found himself leaning in.

The Kaguya acknowledges Sakura first. "You are awake." He says, relief flooding his tone.

"I am." Sakura shoves a slice of apple in her mouth. "And I'm hungry."

The Kaguya smiles and passes her one of the bags he had brought back. "Eat slowly." He says. "Don't choke."

Sakura nods and tears into the bag. Sasuke stands up and moves towards the white haired teen, who passes him a bag too.

"What do you think of Kirigakure?" He asks.

Kimimaro glances down at him, understanding what this was about. "Nothing, really."

Sasuke narrows his eyes. "Even though they massacred your entire clan?"

Kimimaro shrugs. "It was the Kaguya that attacked the village first." He says. "Not to mention, we were never a clan the way you were. I was locked in a cage because my extraordinary abilities were feared. I was let out only so that I could aid in the attack."

Sasuke drops it there. It was so ironic. Here were three people, one who didn't even care his clan had been massacred, one that had seeked the reason behind the brutal death of his entire family for as long as he could remember and one that was responsible for one and probably just as uncaring for the other.

He sighs. He has a feeling he is still too tired to react properly. His thinking is numb and he fears how he will lash out when the reality of everything becomes clearer.

He thinks of Sakura's innocent smiles as she spin around on her feet and of Itachi and Shisui, who had taken up the entire burden of raising him.

A part of him wishes they never have to meet.

* * *

 **So, here's chapter twenty six.**

 _ **Darque: I still need to think about Sasuke's reaction, so yeah, Kimimaro pulls the cliche interruption to an important conversation.**_

 **Raven: How would you react if someone you trusted revealed they killed your family?**

 _ **Darque: I'd be torn.**_

 **Raven: Yeah, and?**  


 ** _Darque: And I'd ask for an explanation before I either rage or...not rage?_**

 **Raven: And do you think Sasuke would react the same way?**

 ** _Darque: Possibly, though he was pretty angst-y in canon, so I've got to put that into consideration...I don't really know, and I don't think I can say._**

 **Raven: I wish this kind of thought process was applicable to your other real life stuff.**

 ** _Darque: Meh,_**

 **Read and Review~**


	27. Chapter 27

_**Chapter TWENTY SEVEN**_

Sasuke receives a letter via a crow summon a day after Sakura awakens. The girl appears to have recovered, at least physically, and Sasuke writes a note with a meeting place and time.

Sakura seems taken by the bird and when Sasuke looks up from the paper, she is smoothing down it's ruffled feathers. Sasuke attaches the note to the crow, allows Sakura to feed it, then sends it back to its summoner.

"My brother can summon them." He tells Sakura. "When we meet him, I can ask him to call on a few."

Sakura's eyes brighten. "Yes!"

Sasuke remembers that animals tended to avoid the girl. Perhaps they could smell the blood on her. Crows, being carrion birds, probably didn't mind.

He finds that her enthusiasm hurts a little, especially when he knows Itachi does not know of Sakura's involvement in the massacre of their clan. He is torn between telling him and keeping it with him.

He wonders if he had known about this before everything, would he still have decided to bond with her and bring the girl back with him?

He likes to think that he would have, especially when Sakura fondly ruffles his hair and giggles when his locks simply stand back up again.

She was just a girl, after all.

* * *

Three three of them leave in the evening, just before the sun has begun to set. Their plan is to meet up with the Konoha team at the Soraku tonight.

"Naruto will be there, yes?" Sakura asks enthusiastically. "And your brother?"

Sasuke shoots the younger girl a small smile and nods. "Hn."

Sakura's eyes brighten and she breaks away from him to run beside Kimimaro, enthusiastically waving her arms. Sasuke sighs as the girl breaks their travel formation, which he has no doubt she has forgotten about. Luckily, he and Kimimaro had considered the possibility of this before hand and he shuffles a little to the left to cover for her.

Sasuke's timings are perfect and they arrive at their destination just as the sun is nothing but a line in the horizon. He senses lingering chakra signatures and knows that the Konoha team had already arrived. There is a second team lingering just around the walls of the village. A single glance in Kimimaro's direction allows him to gauge that the Kaguya is also aware.

Sakura and Kimimaro share a look of wonder as Sasuke leads the into the seemingly abandoned town. "This is one of my clan's weaponries." He says, answering the unasked question. "After we meet up with the team from Konoha, we can restock here."

Kimimaro stiffens at the mention of the Konoha team, and Sasuke in once again reminded that despite Kimimaro's decision to ultimate trust him and follow him, the teen does not trust Konoha. While the Kaguya trusts him with Sakura's well being, the same cannot be said for his views of his Hidden Village.

Sakura, on the other hand, just looks excited. "This is my first time meeting new people outside of Oto." She announces. "I really hope they're nice."

Sasuke reaches out and ruffles her hair. "I'm sure they'll like you." He tells her.

Sakura beams at him and falls in step behind him as he leads the way deeper into the town.

The team from Konoha are doing nothing to conceal their chakra, or maybe it was the sudden bout of homesickness that amplified their presence, but Sasuke knows who exactly is here and where they are the moment he rounds the corner towards the main building.

"Teme!" Something orange and yellow barrels into him and for once, Sasuke does not move. He simply accepts Naruto's overly affectionate hug with the smallest of smiles on his face. "Still as short as ever, Usuratonkachi."

Naruto punches him in the shoulder and steps back, a scowl on his face. "Shut up." He gives him a once over and grin when he realizes that the appears unhurt. His eyes then wander away from him and towards Sakura, who had frozen at the blond's sudden appearance and had not moved since. "You must be the girl friend!"

Sakura jumps at suddenly being addressed. "Huh?"

Sasuke scowls and is about to go clonk the blond on the head once more when the rest of the team catches his eye. "Nii-san!"

He forgets himself for a moment when Itachi appears before him, eyes gentle and a faint smile on his lips. "Otouto."

Sasuke holds back the urge to hug him and turns to the last two members of the team. "Shisui, Nara."

"Sasuke-chan!" Shisui reaches out to hug him too, but Sasuke dodges this one. He nods at Shikamaru, who he hadn't really associated with up until this point, as his cousin loudly complains to Itachi about being ignored.

Sasuke is about to say something when a yelp interrupts him and something barrels into him. "Sasuke!" Sakura spins him around it that he is facing the opposite direction and hides behind his sleeve, eyes wide.

Sasuke looks up to see Naruto standing there with confused look on his face. Kimimaro is rooted to the spot behind the blond, expression blank. Sasuke sighs. "What are you doing, Dobe?" He asks.

"He pulled my hair." Sakura tells him crossly. "And asked if it was real."

Sasuke shoots Naruto a blank stare. "Really?"

Naruto huffs. "It's pink, Teme. _Pink._ I was just curious."

Sakura lets out another yelp and once again slips around to Sasuke's other side, this time so that she is facing him. Sasuke shoots a look over his shoulder to see Shisui with his hand outstretched.

"I think it's very pretty." Shisui says, grinning. "You're a very pretty lady."

Sakura flushes at this and looks down at her feet. Sasuke scowls and slowly detaches the irl from him. Kimimaro steps up beside him and the girl is passed from one set of arms to the other. Sakura smiles in delight and happily moves to hide behind Kimimaro's taller frame.

"Why don'you introduce us to your friends?" Itachi suggests.

Shisui nods. "We are all very curious." He adds.

Sasuke huffs but complies. "These are Kaguya Kimimaro and Sakura." He says, dipping his head in their direction. Kimimaro nods once and Sakura peeks out to wave. "Guys, this is Namikaze Naruto and that's Uchiha Itachi, then Uchiha Shisui and Nara Shikamaru."

"The 'Dobe'." Sakura chirps.

Sasuke smirks when Naruto protests.

Kimimaro watches Sakura poke a little more fun at Naruto then turns to Sasuke. "What do we do now?"

Sasuke glances over at the older teen. "I need to talk to them." He says. "Will you be willing to take Sakura until we're done?"

Kimimaro does not comment on how it is obvious Sasuke is leaving them out of the talk. Instead, he simply nods. "Of course."

Sasuke nods in return then turns to Itachi. "I would like to go greet Neko-baa." He says. The 'We can talk after' is left unsaid, but Itachi understands.

"Very well." He says. "I will meet you once you are done."

* * *

 **So, here's chapter twenty seven~**

 _ **Darque: I dunno man...I'm going back tomorrow...bye bye~**_

 **Raven: :( We did not hang out enough this summer.**

 _ **Darque: :( I know right?**_

 **Raven: You stayed so short.**

 _ **Darque: I know...I usually spend a month.**_

 **Raven: We literally had a week =.=**

 _ **Darque: I know :(**_

 **Raven: Sigh...Well, see you soon?**

 _ **Darque: I hope...yeah.**_

 **Read and Review~**


	28. Chapter 28

_**Chapter TWENTY EIGHT**_

Sasuke watches Kimimaro point in a random direction and then follow Sakura as she scampers off in excitement.

"You seem to like them."

Sasuke turns to his brother and nods stiffly. "They are...not bad." Itachi smiles and Sasuke scowls. "Are you done?"

"I have not said anything." Itachi gestures towards the rest of his team. "Shall we start?"

Sasuke nods and follows his brother to the rest of his team. He settles himself comfortably on the ground and tells the gathered team of the past years he has spent with Orochimaru, then of his plans for the following half a year. He tells them of Kabuto and details on the experiments he had encountered during his time with the snake.

Itachi acknowledges his future plans and supplies him with a few sources on possible former hideout locations that Sasuke's stolen files may have left out.

"Disposal of any experiments are a priority." Itachi tells him. "Also, though I doubt you will find any, retrieve any data left."

Sasuke then tells them of Kimimaro and Sakura, of how the Kaguya is the last of his clan who has sworn loyalty to Sakura and how the pinkette is most likely a born result of Orochimaru's experiments.

He is unable to tell them about Sakura and the clan.

Not yet.

* * *

Sasuke fights himself over this throughout the rest of the day, but as he watches Sakura laugh at something Shisui had said and Itachi watching over them, he decides that they deserve to know.

"Nii-san, Shisui, can I talk to you?"

Kimimaro's eyes flare but he does not say anything. Shisui sighs dramatically and ruffles Sakura's hair before he follows Itachi over towards him. "Jeez, Sasuke-chan, I know you're jealous, but you don't have to pull me away like that."

Sasuke scoffs. "You wish."

Shisui smiles. "She is a very good girl. Is she really Orochimaru's daughter?"

Sasuke takes a deep breath. "I have more to share." He says. "But I need you to promise me, swear, that you will not react rashly."

Shisui gasps and turns to Itachi. "Is Sasuke-chan really tell us not to act rashly?" He asks, eyebrows raised. "The Sasuke-chan who is more rash than both of us combined?"

Itachi elbows him and Shisui laughs, but both of them calm down when Sasuke does not laugh, or even retort. "Sasuke-chan, are you okay?"

"What is it, otouto?"

"I...found out, about the massacre."

Both older Uchiha freeze. Shisui furrows his eyebrows dangerously and Itachi narrows his eyes. "Orochimaru played a part?" His brother asks.

Sasuke hesitates, then nods. "Yes. He ordered it."

"Do you know who it was?" Shisui demands loudly and Sasuke glares at him. A little away, just out of earshot, Sakura looks up curiously. Sasuke waves at her and Sakura grins and waves back before she turns back to something Kimimaro is saying.

"Was it the Kaguya?" Shisui asks, more quietly. "Or..."

Sasuke takes a deep breath. "It was Sakura."

There is a tense silence before Shisui begins to laugh. "No, no way." He says. "The massacre was years ago and Sakura-chan is Sasuke's age. She's just a girl-"

"Who happens to be Orochimaru's daughter." Itachi says curtly.

Shisui flinches and runs a hand through his hair. "How-how did you find out?"

"Orochimaru told me before I killed him." Sasuke says. "I don't...think he was lying."

"Does she know?" Shisui asks. "Does she know that she hugs a boy who's clan she killed off?"

Sasuke thinks back to Sakura's bright embraces, then her screams as Orochimaru tore through her body with a blade and a psychotic, gleeful smile on his face. Screams caused by pain and trauma strong enough to wipe out days worth of memories at a time.

"She doesn't." He says firmly. "Sakura is missing large parts of her memory. Orochimaru used to dissect her, without anesthetics from what I could see, and the trauma makes her lose her memories of the past few days. Who knows how long this has been going on for?"

Both older Uchiha are quiet for a while, and it is Shisui who breaks the silence. "So, what do we do?" He asks. " I mean, all three of us swore revenge on the murderer, years ago. Orochimaru is dead and Sakura-chan, Sakura-chan-"

"Does not knowing justify her actions?" Itachi asks softly.

Sasuke turns to his brother and shook his head. "I don't think so." He admits. "But I can't blame her because if I were to blame anything relatively her, I will have to blame her for being born as the snake's daughter and for not doing anything about her circumstances, which she couldn't help, because she didn't know any better." He let out a choked laugh. "Orochimaru was her world, can you imagine that? She's never been outside Oto or one of the snake's bases without someone accompanying her and even then, it was for missions. _She didn't know what a piggyback was_."

"Sasuke." Shisui's voice is sharp, more sharp than usual, and Sasuke jolts to a halt. He realizes that his breathing is getting faster and he loosens his fists. He hadn't even noticed he had clenched them.

"I know." Itachi tells him gently. "Orochimaru is at fault here. That much is clear."

* * *

Shisui watches Sasuke relaxes a little. He watches the younger nod, hesitate, then turn to walk back towards Sakura and Kimimaro.

"Sasuke-chan was the most adamant on revenge." He says softly. "Remember?"  
Itachi does not say anything, but his eyes are fixed on his younger brother. Nothing shows on his face as he too watches Sakura fret over him before she points off into the distance. Sasuke says something that causes Sakura to grin and Kimimaro to scowl. "Yes." He finally says.

"What do you think?" Shisui asks. "About...about this...mess."

"I do not know." Itachi admits. "Both of us have always believed that the path of revenge was not something Sasuke could endure. It would have destroyed him. Still, I believe it is a little unsettling to see that he is so willing to put it aside after years of training for the sole purpose of avenging the clan."

"Do you think it's a good thing?"

"I honestly do not know."

* * *

 **So, it's been a while...yeah...**

 _ **Darque: We got excuses, you see? Raven was in the hospital after collapsing from stress and I had mock exams the past week.**_

 **Raven: I am alive, yay.**

 _ **Darque: And my exams are almost done too. Last one tomorrow, then I get the rest of the week, then the next, and the one after that off too, because I don't take a science, which is next week, and then we have Chinese New year.**_

 **Raven: Lucky you.**

 _ **Darque: I know.**_

 **Raven:...So, how did you do in your exams?**

 ** _Darque: I won't say. I don't want to stress you out even more._**

 **Raven:...**

 ** _Darque:_ :)**

 **Read and Review!**


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